Theory and practice of design thinking: Systems approach

Abstract

The article describes the practical use of system thinking in product design. The aim of the article is to propose a set of qualitative research methods that can be used to get information about a creative project as a system and use it in practice. The article shows the gradual use of methods on a project that originated at a university in its creative workshops. The data are collected through questionnaires and interviews. The grounded theory method identifies issues from the acquired data and is further solved by the mental mapping technique. Missing parts of the system are added using the backward mapping method. The resulting model is built up using System Thinking Language and is published as a Causal Loop Diagram. This approach enabled both the visible and invisible side of the design process to be displayed. The mental model of the entire design process is very extensive, so the published model solves only one selected category. This category is "project assignment," which is the first phase of the design process. This article is intended for students of creative disciplines at the university who are ready to use systems thinking as well as design thinking. The originality of the article is that it seeks systemic solution to problems that does not have a negative retrospective effect on another part of the design process in the studio.