Thematic Framework
“Research in the field of Design is characterized by the diversity of themes and scientific models, but also by the originality of approaches and results when it encounters other experiences and cultures. Such a scenario prompts reflection on the identity of research in theoretical and/or project dimensions and its positioning and role at local, national, and international levels.”
The summary scenario on the topic outlined during the discussion led to some questions and queries regarding the positioning of university research in Design.
The dimensions of research in Design within the University in Italy were investigated in relation to the types of research (basic, theoretical and/or experimental research, third-party research, etc.), the “geographical scale” (local/national/international), and emerging themes, also in European funding calls, such as H2020 (health and well-being; secure, clean, and efficient energy; smart, green, and integrated transport; climate action, resource efficiency, and raw materials; innovative and secure societies, …).
The table addressed the issue of the need for rapid acquisition of financial resources to support the essential growth of human resources (PhD students, research fellows, researchers) in relation to the slow acquisition of assignments at a “competitive” level, particularly on an international scale (which the evaluation system rewards as authoritative).
Lastly, the recognizability (and knowledge) of Italian research abroad and its competitiveness on a national and international level were discussed, as well as the knowledge and interaction relationships (networks) active among university researchers in Design (in Italy and beyond). Furthermore, within this discussion, the issue of “measurement and evaluation” of the quality of research products in Design was addressed: through which tools is it measured? qualitative, quantitative, qualitative/quantitative?
Objective 01
Knowing to Share – Building a Network
SID can represent a real opportunity for the revival of the Italian scientific research network in Design, today in relation and interaction with other international networks (e.g., Cumulus, the European Design Board, …).
Action – Objective 01
DRM (Design Research Map 2015) Survey
– Development of the DRM (Design Research Map 2015) Survey questionnaire. The questionnaire is developed with the aim of detecting some aspects related to research activity in the field of Design conducted by Italian public universities. It is also possible to compare the data emerging from the Survey with those of the SUA-RD.
– Distribution of the questionnaire to national SID representatives: the questionnaire, which can be completed online, will be distributed by the SID secretariat to all participants in Table 1; site representatives will also be identified to entrust them with the coordination of data collection. Each University will have the opportunity to complete the Survey for a maximum of 10 research projects (conducted between 2010 and 2014), selected within the various thematic and/or disciplinary sections present in each involved University.
Objective 02
Methods and Measures of Design Research. Identity of the Italian Approach
The data emerging from the DRM (Design Research Map 2015) Survey can be processed and interpreted with the aim of evaluating interdisciplinary languages and understanding the nomadic concepts that characterize and define the identity of the Italian approach to design in the international landscape.
Objective 03
Contamination_Interdisciplinary Languages and Nomadic Concepts
SID aims to facilitate the communication of the role of design as a “director,” “mediator of knowledge” with other disciplines with which design collaborates, confronts, and intertwines daily.
Actions – Objectives 02 and 03
The role played by today’s Design as a “director,” “mediator of knowledge,” brings with it “contamination with other scientific sectors” with which Design communicates through ever-evolving languages. Simultaneously, disciplinary boundaries expand to such an extent that today it is difficult to associate few and identifiable meanings with the word Design (a topic of discussion in other tables as well). For this reason, there is still a problem in communicating research externally. Moreover, only by comparing the approaches of our research with those emerging in the international scenario will it be possible to evaluate the identity of the Italian approach. The international scenario must therefore be subject to evaluation in order to compare the methods and measures of design research in Italy with what happens abroad.
To facilitate the communication of the role of design and allow actors from Italian public universities to compare themselves, SID proposes to organize an international conference within which to present Italian case studies, methodologies, and tools adopted in research and teaching, etc.; plenary sessions will be arranged in the conference, with foreign keynote speakers participating, for a “live” reading and comparison, on the Italian and international design scenario in order to describe, outline, and communicate externally the identity of the Italian approach to Design.
