I got a question from a student today asking for good readings in the "foundations of HCI and design". The student is working on a project and needed inspiration for how to address a large and complex HCI design problem. The student already know the works by Rogers, Dourish, Margolin (and me :-), but want more. The student want that can help him reflect upon and actually approach his very real design challenge. I realized that I cannot come up with any good list of readings. There are a huge number of "how to" literature, there are a substantial number of "methods" literature and research out there, there are an endless number of specific product (design) experimentations, but almost nothing that could be seen at addressing the foundation of HCI and design, that is, how to think about the role of HCI, the way to address a complex problem , the nature of design, theoretical broad perspectives, etc. And even worse, there are no discussions or debates between different intellectual and theoretical schools thought or perspectives. This situation is not good. Frequently I meet students, Master and PhD, in the field who really want to, or need to, know much more, who struggle with questions on that level.
If anyone want to discuss this situation or argue that there are actually book that do address this level, please comment or let me know.
If anyone want to discuss this situation or argue that there are actually book that do address this level, please comment or let me know.
Comments
Also, the work of William Gaver, Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby are stuff which are worth looking into, when thinking about design of technology.
Last, but not least, Lucy Suchman's Located Accountabilities in Technology Design might give something to the student on the approach-part.
Are these useful?
Thanks for the suggestions, I am familiar with most of that literature and of course they are all valuable. But, what I am looking for is more writings that takes an overall perspective (like Eriksson), and even more texts where these overall perspectives are discussed, compared, and debated. I like all the authors you recommended, they are certainly interesting.
Thanks
Erik
Thanks for your comments and the recommendation of the book, I don't know if you noticed, but I am actually the author of that book :-) Anyhow, I looked at your blog and you are writing interesting things there! Thanks!
Erik
We´re looking for more discussions about how to incorporate that critical vision into industry practice.
As a thought-provoking book, It was very good, but not too systematic as to support our practice.
I´m reading now Designing Interactions from Bill Mogridge and its very fun to know the history of the people that built up Interaction Design as a discipline, but the author doesn´t tackle the foundations problems the interviews and your book raised.
There is great discussion about the strategic role of the design in coorporations in the Luke Wroblewski blog: http://www.lukew.com/ff/
but it doesn´t go much further into interaction design.
Jon Kolko is looking for more indepth view into the language of interaction design. He is editing an promising upcoming book:
http://brownbearllc.com/interaction/
And there is my blog, but it´s written in portuguese...
http://www.usabilidoido.com.br/cat_design_de_interacao.html
Thanks for the kind words and all the insightful information. I am not familiar with all of it, so thanks. I try to read both Luke and Jon now and then. I am looking forward to Jon's book!
I will look at your site, even though Portuguese makes it a bit difficult to fully comprehend :-)
Erik
Too funny! I did not make the immeadiate connection that you were the author. It's a great book and has been influential to me. Thanks!
However, according to Bryan Lawson there isn't a "how to" book on design (of course approached in the right spirit his books could be seen as "how to" works on the design process). So maybe the problem is less with HCI, and more with how one teaches design. Its a practical subject, rather than a theoretical one. Maybe you should tell your student to read a few design classics (Schon, etc), look at Bryan Lawson's model of design and see how he could adapt it for Interaction Design. The adaptation would provide part of his thesis, and he'd probably be a better designer for grappling with these problems at such a fundamental level.
I think most of the theories that we have that are useful (so not Activity Theory then...), lack the rigour that one might expect of a scientific theory. Their strengths are both context, and possibly also practioner, dependent. But I don't really see that as a weakness. Each theory gives you a different way of framing a problem. The more theories you're familiar with, the more ways you have of framing that problem. A theory could be completely bonkers, but if it helps you design something better that doesn't matter.
My ramblings, for what they're worth.
thanks for your post. I fully agree with the last paragraph in your post! Most important and vital to understand when thinking about theory and practice!
Erik