Author:
Daniel Fallman

Abstract:
Interaction design takes a holistic view of the relationship between designed artifacts, those that are exposed to these artifacts, and the social, cultural, and business context in which the meeting takes place. While there is no commonly agreed definition of interaction design, its core can be found in an orientation towards shaping digital artifacts--products, services, and spaces--with particular attention paid to the qualities of the user experience.

To be able to deal with user experience--including physical, sensual, cognitive, emotional, and aesthetical issues; the relationship between form, function, and content; as well as fuzzy concepts such as fun and playability--a number of recent efforts have been made in the direction of establishing a better understanding of the role of the user experience in interactive systems design. Unlike the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) community for instance, interaction design fully recognizes itself as a 'design discipline' in that its ultimate objective is to create new and change existing interactive systems for the better. There is a current plethora of departments, groups, and multidisciplinary labs dealing with interaction design that have their origins in such diverse places as computer science, HCI, anthropology, industrial design, informatics, and applied physics and electronics. Adding to the disciplinary confusion, each group typically also is configured as a multidisciplinary team.

Since the field of interaction design currently is growing rapidly in scope as well as importance, both within academia and industry, there is an increasing need to also expand, further develop, and professionalize interaction design research. Refined models of interaction design research; embracing both what it currently is as well as pointing toward what it could be, arguably would be very useful tools in this process.

In this paper, we will introduce a model of interaction design research that has evolved at the Umeå Institute of Design, Umeå University, in Sweden in recent years, and which currently is guiding our interaction design research efforts as well as our Ph.D. education. Thinking about interaction design research in the way proposed by the model has helped us to keep up what we see as three vital, external interfaces. First, it leads us to an interface with industry that has facilitated long-term collaborations and an exchange of people and ideas. Second, an interface with academia has encouraged staff and students at the design school--many of whom with no previous experience as part of a research community--to travel to conferences, workshops, and similar gatherings to meet others in the field, thus creating and upholding a network of peers vital to the school. Third, the model also reminds us of our interface with society at large, helping us think about interaction design research as having a voice in societal discussions, and in exploring and shaping our future.

Keywords:
Interaction design, design practice, design explorations, design studies, design theory

Citation:
Fallman, D. (2008) The Interaction Design Research Triangle of Design Practice, Design Exploration, and Design Studies, Design Issues, Vol. 24, No. 3, p. 4-18, MIT Pres

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