Design Thinking and Other Approaches
Nathan Crilly
Cambridge University Press
2024
I978-1-009-49867-8
Reviewed by: Maithili Mishra
Practitioners from different disciplines tend to view the world through unique lenses, shaped by their specific knowledge, methodologies, and values. The intersection of design thinking (DT) and different disciplinary approaches can lead to innovative solutions and cross-pollination of ideas. Design Thinking and Other Approaches—How Different Disciplines See, Think and Act, by Nathan Crilly, thoughtfully maps relationships between design thinking and other approaches like ‘evolutionary thinking’, ‘mathematical thinking’, ‘statistical thinking’, ‘geographical thinking’, ‘historical thinking’, ‘anthropological thinking’, among others. This mapping is done via qualitative visualizations, allowing for a deeper understanding of the similarities, differences, and potential synergies between these approaches. Key chapters review components of disciplinary approaches and examine claims about these approaches, revealing how they evolve as contrasting or complementary. The possibility of connecting design thinking with such an extensive set of disciplinary approaches is an asset for the design community looking to embrace new perspectives and ideas. The central approach of “design thinking” is portrayed as a set of components labelled as – ‘creativity and innovation’, ‘user-centeredness and involvement’, ‘problem solving’, ‘iteration and experimentation’, ‘interdisciplinary collaboration’, ‘ability to visualize’, ‘gestalt view’, ‘abductive reasoning’, ‘tolerance of ambiguity and failure’, and ‘blending analysis and intuition’.
A section examining the principal attributes of design thinking relative to the myriad disciplinary approaches is illustrated in a scientifically organized manner, citing broad-ranging published work. Related literature includes work on generating creative ideas across individual disciplinary approaches and turning them into innovation propellers for competitive advantage. Works on extracting geographical applicability spring from ideas on promoting a stronger African design identity that can inform relevant solutions for African societies. For deriving relevance to the future of work, literature on adopting historical thinking is appreciated for changing the fundamental mental structures for grasping the meaning of the past. The author emphasizes that “a consequence of abstracting from the specifics of disciplinary practices is that the resulting descriptions are no longer tied so closely to those disciplines’ traditional domains of application. As such, it [describing disciplinary approaches] is a feature of many projects that they advocate for the wide-ranging applicability of the disciplinary approaches that they are describing. These are approaches that can ostensibly be learnt by many people outside the originating discipline and implemented by them in many contexts or domains.”
A deep theoretical characterization of every approach follows. The disciplinary approaches are considered as “a set of components, which can be identified as ways of thinking, objects of thought, thinking skills, cognitive styles, habits of mind, mindsets, craft knowledge, attitudes, logic, perspectives, inclinations, dispositions, personal traits, values, and perspectives (as distinct from subject matter knowledge, processes, actions, techniques, tools, and outputs).” The author studies "subtle, complex and shifting things” (i.e. the actual disciplines) and works to provide definite, simple, and static descriptions of them (i.e. the specified approaches).
The section on ‘Collecting Disciplinary Approaches’ tabulates an expansive set of components providing a detailed understanding of the elements of twelve disciplinary approaches. The author introduces ‘variants’ to refer to the different proposals of definitions of ‘components’ that refer to the different parts or ingredients that make up any disciplinary approach, allowing for a more nuanced analysis. Systematic tabulation details one variant of each approach, including the original name provided by the authors, a full list of its components, the definition of each component and anything that the components are explicitly contrasted against. There is also a summary of the main methods used to identify the components, and any associated notes of clarification. This organized and consistent tabulation permits comparison within and across disciplines.
Examining the table, it is interesting to see how concepts of design thinking maps to those of entrepreneurial thinking, for example; (be empathetic and user-centered) → (develop empathy for customers), (welcome ambiguity and complexity) → (tolerate ambiguity), (seek collaboration and co-creation) → (enlist others in your venture), (be creative and change oriented) → (be creative within constraints). Similar mappings involving design thinking and systems thinking, for example; (adopt an integrative perspective) → (adopt a holistic view). Design thinking also blends well with computational thinking for example; (engage in problem solving) → (decompose and solve problems), (be experimental and iterative) → (work iteratively and incrementally), (demonstrate design process) → (plan and design solutions). Future work in the field of design involves design thinking-led-experimentation for boosting the quality and relevance of the tapestry of design artifacts. The author mentions that “central to design is the practice of conceiving plans for enabling goal-directed change. When described at this level of abstraction, aspects of design thinking will clearly be employed in other disciplines, such as when scientists plan experiments to test hypotheses (‘experiment design’).”
"Design Thinking and Other Approaches" is a valuable resource for understanding the interplay between design thinking and various disciplinary perspectives. The book reinforces the general notions of approaches of ‘design thinking’ that includes empathy, visualisation, and creativity, and provides a solid foundation for further research and exploration in this area. The insightful exploration thus facilitates cross-disciplinary learning and sets the stage for further theoretical development and practical application to emerging collaborative design environments.
Maithili Mishra is a designer from Clemson University. A budding researcher, she specializes in the research areas of Human-Centered Computing (HCC), specifically virtual humans (VH). She is also interested in the development, critique, evaluation, and characterization of UX and visualization systems.