Required Reading : Designers, Just Say No to 'Scientism'
In a collaboration with The Atlantic, the blog design mind (from Frog) has posted a series of essays about the power of design. A recent entry discusses the way research, in its collection and analysis, has shifted from its rigorous origins in science to the business world, an environment in which its execution is less disciplined but its conclusions are accepted without question.
The danger, as author Ben McAllister puts it, comes from the willingness of designers to subscribe to this "scientism" in the hopes that it will help win over skittish corporate clients who don't like to be told that results (and the design process) can't always be accurately predicted.
McAllister writes, "This way of thinking may help designers gain acceptance in the short term, but it ultimately cheapens the most important dimension of their work: the human dimension, including things like judgment, taste and creativity."
It's a short and worthwhile read, and to be clear, McAllister isn't questioning the merits of research in the form of ad-hoc explorations and first hand observation espoused by firms like Frog or IDEO, but rather the kind of top-down corporate commandments such as: This study shows women don't like blue therefore we must eliminate all blue!
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