Abstract
Where Marxism used negative terms such as 'alienation' to characterise the loss of enfranchisement and engagement in industrialised capitalism, this paper outlines positive methods for enhancing well being in education and industry. It develops an idea of John Ruskin (1851) as a possible method for helping designers to design for higher levels of synergy. Here, synergy is defined using ecological systems as a point of reference. If synergy can be mapped as a set of interdependent relations it would be possible to evaluate complex situations in the real world. The paper argues that we reduce synergy by design-related activities that value ‘quantity’ rather than ‘quality’. Arguments such as the 'economies of scale' encouraged us to replace older biological and ecological methods with simpler, mechanical or chemical approaches. This approach contributed to a reduction in the number, and more importantly, the diversity of living species. However, unlike the almost infinite complexity of Nature itself, in the auditing of managerial tasks there is a finite upper limit for designated behavioural systems in which the number of carefully agreed variables might be relatively small. Hence, International standards could eventually be implemented. The paper asks whether this approach might eventually be developed as a practical benchmark for evaluating the eudaemonic aspects of professional design practice. Some preliminary evaluation of the system has already been done on ‘greening the curriculum’ in higher education. Similar methods could be used to evaluate the idea’s potential in a more professional and commercial context.
Citation
Wood, J. (2004) Could Synergies of Relations in Design Become the Basis for Professional Standards of Eudaemonia?, in Redmond, J., Durling, D. and de Bono, A (eds.), Futureground - DRS International Conference 2004, 17-21 November, Melbourne, Australia. https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/drs-conference-papers/drs2004/researchpapers/117
Could Synergies of Relations in Design Become the Basis for Professional Standards of Eudaemonia?
Where Marxism used negative terms such as 'alienation' to characterise the loss of enfranchisement and engagement in industrialised capitalism, this paper outlines positive methods for enhancing well being in education and industry. It develops an idea of John Ruskin (1851) as a possible method for helping designers to design for higher levels of synergy. Here, synergy is defined using ecological systems as a point of reference. If synergy can be mapped as a set of interdependent relations it would be possible to evaluate complex situations in the real world. The paper argues that we reduce synergy by design-related activities that value ‘quantity’ rather than ‘quality’. Arguments such as the 'economies of scale' encouraged us to replace older biological and ecological methods with simpler, mechanical or chemical approaches. This approach contributed to a reduction in the number, and more importantly, the diversity of living species. However, unlike the almost infinite complexity of Nature itself, in the auditing of managerial tasks there is a finite upper limit for designated behavioural systems in which the number of carefully agreed variables might be relatively small. Hence, International standards could eventually be implemented. The paper asks whether this approach might eventually be developed as a practical benchmark for evaluating the eudaemonic aspects of professional design practice. Some preliminary evaluation of the system has already been done on ‘greening the curriculum’ in higher education. Similar methods could be used to evaluate the idea’s potential in a more professional and commercial context.