Case Studies: Design Against Crime

Yesterday in the Designing Innovative Research module we were initially given a lecture by Mike Press and Lisa Cresswell, who is a research assistant on the Safer Spaces project. It was on the Design Against Crime project, which I have heard about previously on more than one occasion, so I was a little worried that it might be going over old ground. However I was pleased to discover that the emphasis of the lecture was on the process of conducting a research project.

Mike described how the whole project had evolved over the last decade, and gave examples of how they often had to adapt for various situations. He also illustrated a series of "tips" for research, some of the ones which resonated with me I have listed below:

• Say "yes we can" even if you think you can't
• Build tactical and strategical alliances
• Finish a report with "clearly more research is necessary" 

(I particularly liked this statement, Mike referred to it in the context of gaining further funding and more work. However I feel this will often be the statement required after a research study, as it's more than likely that you will not find all the right answers after conducting an investigation and will undoubtedly need to look further. I suppose in ethnographic research this will often be an issue, as there is always something else interesting to look at. It will be a matter of establishing what the designer is looking for and the boundaries of exploration).

• Work with the best people and give them their heads
• Innovate your methods
• Go for targeted audiences
• Keep evolving your research focus
• Interdisciplinary teams work best
• Versatility and adaptability is required.

One of the key principles from the talk, which was referenced in a few of the "tips", was this idea of choosing the right team, and having space to adapt. I am a firm believer in the concept of interdisciplinary teams, and I am always keen to see what different perspectives people from different backgrounds can bring to a team.

Mike also remarked on the subject of knowledge transfer, specifically in relation to the conversations between academics and the MI5 for the Design Against Crime project. Again it reiterated the need to be able to find a common language when communicating with people out-with your own domain.

Lisa made an interesting point in regards to the interview she had for her research assistant position. She said don't tell them people what you "do", but instead convey the skills you have such as communication, facilitation and critical thinking, which can be applied in a variety of contexts. 

We were also given talks from Jamie Henderson from the Innovation Portal and Ken Edwards from the Enterprise Gym. I do try and find the relevance in every lecture we have, and see how I can apply it to my own practice. I did struggle to engage with the content of these two talks, however I do see how they could be useful if I did want to set up a business on my own, and they did make me think about the fact that there is often a business model behind research and it is something to consider at all times.

Traces of Human Activity

Yesterday we travelled through to Edinburgh for the day to conduct a fieldwork activity. We were given the task of observing and recording traces of human activity in the built environment, and we were given some criteria of what to look out for. These were:

• By-products of use
• Adaptations for use
• Displays of self
• Public messages

We were also looking at them within their context i.e. clarification of/by the larger picture. Chris and I walked along Princes Street firstly, before heading through the Old Town along the Royal Mile and the Cowgate. We then went back towards the New Town and walked along Rose Street.

In the few hours we spent on the streets we noticed many examples of remnants of human activity. We were both intrigued by the amount of litter that had been placed down. It appears that people will happily place empty cups, bottles, cans etc. on a wall or shelf. It is as if they feel it is not really littering, as the object almost fits the spot it has been left at.

Traces of human activity in Edinburgh

The image above also shows how people will puts stickers on objects such as lamp posts and bins. Often it seemed that people were more likely to place their sticker somewhere if there was already one on it, giving the impression that people will "break a rule" if someone else has already done so. This also relates back to the people I observed in London, who would hold back and watch how someone else operated a ticketing machine in the underground before doing so themselves, and so picking up on the social cues.

Being Human

Yesterday afternoon we met with Richard Harper, a senior researcher at Microsoft, as well as attending the public lecture he gave in the evening titled Changing Humans. 

It was interesting to hear him talk about understanding how people think, and how this can be aided by developing an understanding of how you think yourself. He related this to the conversations between designers and non designers, and said that it can involve creating a common ground together.

I liked the point he made when describing communication as a human act, as in some environments it can be interpreted as an exchange of data, with humans seen as machines. However he also stressed that neither of these are necessarily wrong, but are simply a different viewpoint.

I thought about this a bit more while we were discussing reflection, and reflective writing with Jonathan Baldwin in the first session of the Designing Innovative Research module. When describing the action of making a cup of tea or brushing your teeth most people will go through the process in a systematic way. We were encouraged to question why you do certain things in order to evaluated and reflect on the action i.e. why do you have a cup of tea? I though back to what Richard Harper had said and realised that often when people make a cup of tea or coffee, they are not doing it because they are thirsty and need a drink, but it is like a performance. They do it to take a break, gain comfort, or even to make a social gesture. People don't go for coffee to drink coffee; they go to have a chat.

I think I would like to relate this to my ideas for my 3rd semester project, and particularly the social interaction aspect of design.