Design (re) thinking: Reflective practice as design research

Abstract

This paper contends that reflective practice constitutes a form of design research, and will build an argument around design in the discipline of architecture to support this statement. The paper will consist of four parts: a design process model based on the work of Bernard Leupen et.al. at the Delft University of Technology; a discussion of Donald Schön’s work around the theory of the reflective practitioner; a design research approach to enable reflective practice, derived from the analytical approaches of Geoffrey Baker, Paul Righini and Bernard Leupen et.al.; and an example of the design research approach in practice. Designers must have a considerable knowledge of comparable solutions in order to resort to experience, and this professional knowledge is core to the concept of the reflective practitioner. Schön suggests an epistemology of practice that recognises knowledge in the practical competence and artistry that some practitioners bring to the divergent situations of practice. Analysis is an important enabler of reflective practice, and can be construed as the temporal opposite of the design process. All three analytical approaches discussed rely on the use of diagrams to uncover the forces that influenced the design process, thereby retracing the steps of the architect through the design process. It is evident from the approach to design research presented and applied that reflective practice does constitute design research, and that it has the potential to address the complex issues that confront design researchers today. In utilising reflective practice as a form of design research, practitioners and researchers can establish a synergy of combined conceptual, theoretical, empirical and practical considerations.