Social Theory as a Thinking Tool for Empathic Design

Carolien Postma is product researcher at Philips Consumer Lifestyle, specializing in user studies in the early stages of new product development. She previously worked for ID-Studiolab, Delft University of Technology, where she conducted the study presented in this paper, and developed a user-centered design approach, Creating Socionas, as part of her PhD research in industrial design. Her interests include design for social experience and design research methods in new product development practice.

Kristina Lauche holds the Chair of Organizational Development and Design at the Radboud University Nijmegen and is Professor of Organization Studies of Innovation at Delft University of Technology. She previously worked at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich and the University of Aberdeen, studying organizations from high-risk industries to manufacturing and consumer goods. Her main research interests are technology implementation and appropriation, team processes in complex environments, and coordination across functional and disciplinary boundaries. Her work has been published in journals such as Design Studies, Journal of Design Research, Computer Supported Collaborative Work and Journal of Product Innovation Management.

Pieter Jan Stappers is Professor of Design Techniques at Delft University of Technology. His research and teaching deal with the early phases of design projects, With a focus on understanding the context and needs of end-users, matching these needs with opportunities in new technology, and communicating needs, ideas, and product/service concepts. Besides this, his main interests are expressive visualization techniques, and the role of design skills in research projects.