Thing-Centeredness
Thing-centeredness is a design perspective that takes the object as the starting point for design, rather than the user or the system.
Instead of asking “what does the user need?”, a thing-centered approach asks: what is the character of this thing? what are its properties, behaviors, affordances? what would be a natural extension of what it already is?
Methods
Object diary — spend a day observing your object. When is it used? By whom? How does it change throughout the day?
Character analysis — what are the essential qualities of this object? What makes it recognizably itself?
Inter-thing correspondence — how does your object relate to other objects around it? What is its social life?
Thing-personification — if your object were a person, who would it be? What would it say? What would it notice?
Related
Linked from
- Assignment 2Prototype a Smart Thing16 Jun
- Assignment 3Write a Report and Reflection25 Jun
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- GlossaryKey technical and conceptual terms used in this course.
- Lucid.Bar WhitelistApproved objects and sensors for Assignment 2.
- Week 4Écouter Presentations + Furniture Music19 May
- Week 6Lecture + Design Workshop2 Jun