Participatory design
A Co-Creative design technique that allows the involves designing with people, there by ensuring that the community that the design is targeted to, has a hand in the design process as well as to ensure that the design caters to the “Actual” needs of the community.
“Participatory Design started from the simple standpoint that those affected by a design should have a say in the design process...values that strategically guided participatory design is the idea affirming the importance of making participants’ tacit knowledge come into play in the design process—not just their formal and explicit competencies but those practical and diverse skills that are fundamental to the making of things as objects or artifacts.”
Nature & context
Co-Creative, Design Technique
Resources
Materials needed like stationery, clear description of the workshop, consent, extra support if vulnerable participants are involved, lab/room to conduct the workshop, facilitator (If required).
Procedure
Before: Understand the context and draft out a clear description of the workshop. If targeted for a vulnerable audience, arrange for assistance. Include a note about voluntary participation and consent form. Decide the workshop schedule and arrange prerequisites like location, stationery/tool kits and incentives/rewards (if possible) to be used during the session. The next step is to recruit participants relevant to the context (as many as needed). Have a set of back up participants to make sure there are enough participants available for the session.
During: While actively participating in the workshop with the rest of the participants, record notes/non-verbal cue through observation. Be available to assist participants and clarify their question. At the end of the session, inform participants if there is going to be a next session. Share incentives with participants (if any).
After: Quickly conduct an analysis, right after, of the notes, pictures as well as design created by the participants and record/annotate your insights. Send out a thank you note to the participant.
Use Case
Using participatory design workshop when designing robots for care i.e., precisely a discussion that I had with Sawyer about conducting a workshop to design customization for a socially assistive robot, by letting users customize the sensor locations in the bot. By involving participants who are actual users of the bot, the workshop will allow designers to understand the participant's actual needs and each of their approach to design.
Sense Making Data
By involving the participants that the design targets and analyzing their design outcomes, designer can ensure that the end design is inclusive as well as caters to participant’s actual needs and not what just the designer “thought” their needs to be.