Henrik Wøhlk Larsen & Jane Thygesen
Research Think
Act
How to do Designthinking
Thoughts Through the Ages
Research Think
Act
How to do Designthinking
Copyright 2019
Thoughts Through the Ages
Henrik Wøhlk Larsen & Jane Thygesen 3. edition, 2019
ISBN 978-87-998684-7-6 VIA Type Office
Printed in Denmark 2019
Photo, translation & artdirection: Henrik Wøhlk Larsen hwl@via.dk
Dear Reader
Here is a collection of guidelines when you want to research, think and act A proces often refered to as designthinking.
You work through the following five fases to create a great product.
Research and understand the situation and/or persons (Empathize).
Define the probleme. What is the question? (Define) Produce many and different ideas (Ideation)
Make the product – rough/quick (Prototype).
Test your product – fail and learn. (Test)
You follow this proces the first time you start a designproces. Then you switch between testing and developing new ideas and prototypes.
Dyson, the inventor of a popular vacumcleaner is said to have made more than 4.000 prototyper before he reached the current model on the market.
And he is still doing it—switching between ideation and testing.
You can work like the arcitect Bjarke Ingels, who uses models/prototypes as the center of a collective cocreative of different buildings. You have a model as the center of the conversation. It makes you focus on the project and the ideas—not the persons involved. You show your thoughts on a small scale, you do not only say it. You communicate through a model.
Developing new solutions or products is based on research and imaginati- on. As Eininstein put it: ”logic will get you from A to B, but imagination can get you anywhere.” The challange in antropologi is to see what everybody has seen before, but think what noone has thought before” (Albert von Szent-György).
Designthinking and the ability to make innovation is a central part of “21st century skills”. We have to develop cureosity, persistens, imagination and the ability to work together as well as gathering knowledge.
We have collected a number of tools to make it easy to research, think and act—change the world
!
Make the world a better place.
Henrik Wøhlk Larsen & Jane Thygesen
I know, I know nothing…..
Socrates, The Capitol- museum, Rome
A beginner’s mindset
Be courius - ask about anything Listen, listen really well….
Do not judge Seek patterns:
What? How?
Why?
5 times Why?
The 5 Whys is about seeking the root cause for the problem. Toyota is one of the companies that praise and use this method.
Describe the problem:
Why?
Why?
Why?
Why?
Why?
Research - seek to understand the ones you want to help
(Empathize).
Observe
Talk to people Try it yourself!
Åbycrucifix, The Nationale museum of
What do they say? What do they think?
What do they do? What do they feel?
Empathy map
Gender, age,
background.
What are the users
needs?
Do a profil of a typical user.
Use all your knowledge.
Glyptoteket, Copenhagen
When you research the users needs
Do interviews - but prepare
qquestions.
Identify themes before interview.
Ask Why? Ask people to tell stories.
Ask questions when things seem odd, observe bodylanguage, accept pauses and silence (allow pauses in the conversation to be more than 10 seconds).
Notice the way you ask. Use neutrale words, do not suggest answeers. Record the
conversation or let someone else take notes.
Ask the users who use the product the most.
They might have insights other users do not
think about but experience too.
When I have performed the interview
Fill out the form. What have I learned?
Interesting quotes: 3 things I have learned from this interview:
1
2
3
When you research the users needs
What do they do? How do the do it? Why do they do it?
Understand what happens in real life and how it feels…
Take pictures of users and study them
Find persons you want to understand. Tell
them what your interests are and ask for their accept of your recording their experiences.
Ask a person you are interessed in to take pictures of the sitautions you would like to comprehend.
Make them tell about the pictures.
Exebition, Museum der Dinge, Berlin.
Define the problem
What is the
question?
Understand the problem, the reason, the consequences and the solution:
Problem
The reason why the problem exist
Consequences
Solution
How to get ideas
”An idea is nothing more or less than a new combination of old elements”
James Webb Young
Grubleren, August Rodin, Glyptoteket, København.
Do not be satisfied with the usual solutions.
Make it a priority to get many and very diverse ideas.
Most ideas emerge when
relaxing. Walking or runing,
taking a shower or playing.
Principles for brainstorm, used by University of
Stanford and at IDEO.
”The sky is the limit”
Accept outrageous ideas
Only one conversation at a time Get many ideas
Build on others ideas
Be visuel—draw the idea/build models Keep focus on the subject
No judge – avoid bloking
Pantheon, Rome
“We tend to forget that words are, themselves, ideas. They might be called ideas in a
state of suspended
animation. When the words are mastered the ideas tend to come alive again.”
James Webb Young
A Technique for Producing Ideas
When I need to create many ideas
Think without limitations: What if anything is possibly?
What is it the best do?
Can you locate analogies to mimic?
Cats eyes is visibly at night. You copy that in bicycle reflectors. Where do you find the same proces or solve the same
problem?
Bodystorm/rolleplay: Be user/play the proces your product play a part in.
Choose limitations.
Identify a variabel: cost, design or…..
Focus on what change will mean.
Usermade prototypes
Let the user do prototypes. LEGO does
that. How can you?
When I need many ideas
Negative brainstorm: What would be a bad idea? Do the opposite.
From bad to good ideas
A stupid idea The opposite idea
A stupid idea The opposite idea
A stupid idea The opposite idea
A stupid idea The opposite idea
hwl@via.dk/jthy@via.dk
When I have to develop or choose between different ideas
Questions to ask What is the point?
Who says it?
What is new?
Who wants to hear about it?
Make demands on the design
You have to be abel to use the solution without preparation
The solution has to be reuseble.
Play with problem and solutions
”How can we….?”
Reframe/rename the challenge/
the problem. The definition of a problem will often lead you to a solution.
Divide the challenge in parts
The worldchampion in eating hotdogs:
Takeru Kobayashi choose to eat sausage
and bread separately and created new
world records.
Choose a good idea
Fill the form below:
Explain yor idea in one sentens:
What do like about the idea?
Which problem are you solving?
Who is going to benefit from the idea?
Sketch your idea
When I have to choose
between different solutions
Do a coordinate system:
Which two concerns are important for the
product? Is it price, quality, sustainebility, design?
That it is easy to use or?
Then you know what your choices are. What your
prototypes can do?
Test your product -
Fail and learn
Make a prototype of the product
Use the prototype to start a conversation and learn about the product. Fail fast and cheap, communicate through the prototype and solve disagrements in the designgroup Divide problems in different parts you can test.
Make more prototypes. And learn what they can do and what they can not do.
They will help you to understand the user better and you understand your
opportunities.
When I test my product
Ask poetentiel users what they like about your product?
What could be/should be different?
What are the flaws?
How much will they pay for the product?
Sell it. You know they really like it or if they are being polite.
Alexanderplatz, Berlin.
+ What is positive? - Critic
? Questions New ideas
Feedback
When I test the product:
What is the story in your product?
Storytelling: What is the point? Be autentic, let the story be caracterdriven, make sure the story has action, conflict and change.
Do the story as a video: Short and focused.
Homer, Altes Museum, Berlin.
Promote your product
Use the AIDA-concept to create Attention, Interest, Desire and Action around your idea or product.
Attention How do you create attention/awareness of the product? Do you use text or pictures?
Interest Why is the product important to consumer?
Desire Why do the consumer want the product?
What does it do?
Action How can I get the product?
”The fundamental key to all succes is action”
Pablo Picasso
About the writers
Henrik Wøhlk Larsen is assistent professor at the teacher training programme at VIA University College- Campus Silkeborg .
hwl@via.dk.
Researchsubjects
Creativity, Creative thinking, Creativityassesments, Empowerment, Digital media productions in schools, Social Science, Etics, History, Design &
Entrepreneurship.
Member of the Innovationboard at the Theacher trainer Education.
Working with the PISAassesmenttest in ”creative thinking” for the OECD.
Jane Thygesen is assistent professor at the teacher training programme at VIA University College- Campus Silkeborg . jthy@via.dk.
Researchsubjects
Creativity, Digital media productions in schools, Religion and Etics, Design & Entrepreneurship.
