Problem Framing

Problem Framing helps designers define issues they want to focus on and make issues more focused and addressable. In Industrial design, and several other design disciplines, designers use 'pain points' or points of friction in the user experience to support problem framing, and to elucidate areas where they can intervene and improve the experience of the person they are designing for. Many design challenges start with a search for 'pain points' that designers can solve. This is a specific and useful type of problem frame. However this can lead to an excessive focus on (and even fetishization of) the pain and distress of other people. There is also a tension around who defines the problem and why.

Looking beyond the presented problem can allow new perspectives to emerge, opening up the possibility of more varied solutions. Little research exists about how engineering designers engage in this process, which we call problem exploration. In a study with engineering students, each student talked aloud as they worked to create design solutions; next, we asked them to explain their problem focus and to define the problem they addressed in each solution. The protocols revealed multiple cognitive strategies used to structure and frame the presented problem in alternative ways. Further research is aimed at empirically-based design tools to support problem exploration in engineering design.

This paper argues that using a design-led approach is highly beneficial when tackling complex problems to transform ambiguity into actionable design briefs and solution opportunities. This is evidenced by way of an ongoing project with a large public-sector organisation. Northumbria University's School of Design academic experts use design-led approaches to innovation that promote 'creative fusion' between diverse stakeholders in order to tackle 'wicked problems'. The authors continue this work as part of an AHRC/ERDF-funded programme entitled Creative Fuse North East (CFNE), along with five regional universities, of which the project discussed here is a part. The main objective of which is to develop and deploy approaches to innovation that apply skills from creative graduates to benefit the wider creative economy, address barriers to innovation and promote growth and sustainability within and without of the Creative, Digital and IT sector (CDIT). It will be argued that to do this it is vital to convert stakeholders into co-creation activists empowered with the creative confidence required to speculate about uncertain futures.

This paper explores " problem exploration heuristics, " or cognitive strategies used to identify and reframe design problem descriptions. The way a design problem is structured influences the types of ideas a designer generates; in particular, some framings may lead to more creative solutions and using multiple framings can support diverse solutions. Most existing problem exploration strategies have not been derived from empirical studies of engineering design practice. Thus, in our work, we drew upon a sample of engineering design problems and analyzed how the problem descriptions evolved during design. Examining iterations on the problem description allowed us to identify heuristics evident in designers' re-crafting of problem descriptions. Heuristics were defined based on the elements in each problem description and their perceived role in transforming the problem. We present a systematic methodology for identifying problem exploration heuristics, and describe five unique Problem Exploration Heuristics commonly observed in structuring design briefs.

Ideation is the process of generating ideas for solving design problems, and it is a critical part of
the overall design process. In order to encourage designers to ideate across a broader spectrum of
ideas, we developed the Design Problem Framework (DPF) to assist in the development and
framing of design problem statements. Part of the basis for the DPF was research on cognitive
styles, which suggests that there is a range of preferences for approaching problem solving, and
that these preferences influence how different individuals naturally approach ideation. We used
Kirton’s Adaption-Innovation theory as a basis for understanding the range of cognitive styles.
The other part of the basis for the DPF was research on problem framing, which suggests that the
structure of design problem statements influences an individual’s approach and the outcomes
produced. Using the DPF as a foundation, we propose that design problems that encourage
adaptive ideation behaviors include more specified constraints, along with criteria for solutions
that build on already existing solutions to the same or similar problems. In contrast, design
problems that encourage innovative ideation behaviors include criteria for solutions that are
radically different from existing solutions and are not bound by specific constraints. In this
paper, we present a set of five design problems constructed using the DPF, with three different
versions of each problem statement: (1) a neutrally framed version; (2) an adaptively framed
version; and (3) an innovatively framed version. Three examples of student-generated solutions
are also discussed to illustrate the resulting outcomes. We propose this framework as a guide for
the development of design problem statements for use in education, research, and the workplace.

This study explored how guided ideation can support concept initiation and development. We conducted a set of in-class activities in a junior-level industrial design studio at a large Midwestern US university with 20 students. Participants generated concepts individually while working on a previously defined problem. They performed a functional decomposition of existing concepts, then used a self-selected function to rapidly generate ideas in three stages over 45 minutes, supported by Design Heuristics cards. Through analysis of eight cases, we found that generated concepts were consistent with the originally defined function. The students' ability to create a range of solutions increased over time, and concepts became more divergent through each of the three stages. Use of Design Heuristics changed, beginning as a tool for divergent concept generation (ideation), moving to a more mechanical transformation of existing concepts (iteration), and concluding with a broader, more evaluative synthetic framing (recomposition). Based on these results, we offer implications for the integration of idea generation methods across multiple stages in design and engineering contexts.

In problem framing, designers produce frames, or a new perspective on a situation, that help to create a novel standpoint from which a problem situation may be tackled. Recently, there is an increase in the popularity of design as a problem solving and innovation approach outside of the traditional design field. This leads to new demands for explicit frame creation instructions and tools. However, most researchers studied the use of frames and processes around problem frames but not where frames come from. So, there is a need for a better understanding of problem framing. In this paper we propose the study of metaphor as a way to improve our understanding of problem framing. This approach opens up the rich knowledge base of metaphor research to help illuminate the ‘mysterious’ problem framing process. Base on this initial study of selected metaphor theories; we have developed a typology of metaphors that illuminates how metaphorical problem frames are created.

A comprehensive study of early childhood injuries undertaken by Nationwide Children's Hospital in 2010 revealed that the common household spray bottle was the most likely source of injury for young children under the age of five. Due to the size of their hands, small children typically point the spray nozzle directly at the eyes and mouth when attempting to actuate the trigger with both thumbs. Nationwide Children's Hospital contacted The Ohio State University seeking help with a new trigger design that would effectively eliminate the spray bottle as a source of injury. A design and engineering team conducted additional human-centered research and found a range of alternative design opportunities that could reduce the number of injuries caused by household cleaners. The hospital team was interested in developing a solution to the design problem as they defined it. The design team, following the directive of the Hospital team, proceeded to design and prototype a successful two– stage-triggering mechanism that is currently going through the patent process in the USA. This design was tested and found to meet all the requirements set by the hospital's design brief. Although the design of the mechanism was successful from a functional standpoint, it has not as yet been adopted by industry. This paper presents a critical case study of the process by which the re– designed trigger mechanism was created, paying special attention to the " framing " of the design problem and the limited understanding of market constraints faced by the hospital and design teams. We believe this case study represents a useful example of how addressing a compelling need through a good design solution translates to a commercially viable alternative in the market.

The problem is a fundamental and initial part of the design process that results from the difference between the current situation and the desired situation. Designers employ a range of techniques to address problems, which are a key component of the design process. Apart from architecture, most tactics are multidisciplinary in nature. Problem-solving techniques have an impact on the effect of architecture as a product and a site of representation of design processes. As a result, studying the influence of strategies on architecture is crucial. Designers, on the other hand, have worked for decades to develop suitable techniques for solving problems in profitable professions like design. The goal of this study is to examine problem-solving techniques from various backgrounds in order to better understand how they affect architecture. The essay attempts to investigate issue framing as an architectural technique as well as multidisciplinary problem-solving strategies. The first phase introduces and compares problem-solving techniques in a deductive manner, and then the problem-framing capacities have been treated as a design origin strategy inferentially. The information for this study was gathered through the use of library methods. Finally, problem framing appears to give interdisciplinary problem-solving capabilities to productive fields such as architecture as a problem-solving technique.

Second authored book. Projected publication date: November 2017.

U.S. Library of Congress Control Number LCCN #2017954860.

Description: How to reset your mindset using psychological tactics and Interconnectivity so you can see what you could not see, so you can do what you could not do.

Foreword by:
Dr. Ruben Lambert (PsyD)
Licensed Psychologist | Zen Master (Korean Zen Tradition)
Wisdom Spring Wellness Services
New Jersey - USA

Book Formats:
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-Mandatory textbook of an international academy