Fostering resistance: Acknowledging notions of power exertion and politics in design facilitation

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School of Arts, Design and Architecture | Master's thesis
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2020

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Mcode

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en

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115

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Abstract

Design facilitation is among one of the most acclaimed approaches applied in contemporary collaborative projects. Intended as both the overarching process and the mediating act between a facilitator, typically a designer, and actors such as citizens, it has increasingly gained popularity due to the participatory, inclusive, co-creative, and empathic principles associated with it. The sudden recognition of the field of Participatory Design (PD) has nonetheless led to the use and (mis-)(over-)use of practice, causing an exponential loss of its political origin (Seravalli, 2014) if compared for example to the Scandinavian participatory movements in the ‘70s driven by political disputes regarding workplace democracy (Simonsen & Robertson, 2012). Design facilitation, among other areas of practice, has become a buzzword, rendering inevitable the adoption and adaptation of different definitions to it. This aspect, despite highlighting facilitation’s versatility, leaves room for deliberate and convenient interpretations of its meaning, use, and ethical limitations. The research focuses on acknowledging and rendering visible the otherwise often unaddressed political nature of design facilitation by making more explicit its underpinning structures and components. It focuses on critically contrasting contemporary views of design facilitation, which are typically apolitical, against revised notions that take into consideration its complex power dynamics and political implications. Delving into the interconnectedness between design, power, politics and participatory practices becomes an opportunity to explore contemporary mainstream notions within design that are worth being revisited and challenged from an alternative stance. The thesis is entirely theoretical and draws on principles of transdisciplinary research. Three lenses - critique, unpacking, and language use - are established and applied to an extensive analysis of literature belonging to design, philosophy, social studies, and political sciences. Combined with a systematic narrative approach and critical reviews, the lenses enable the spotting of misleading discourses and misuse of terminology. Said approach aims to foster a better understanding of the complexity behind the explored theoretical notions and to evaluate their current use. The thesis also takes into consideration a plurality of voices by reviewing three doctoral dissertations that address these interconnected spheres and analyzing their research processes and drawing insight from the way they clash and overlap. Finally, the conducted research aims to highlight the importance of unpacking concepts and areas of design to foster a more accountable practice and research, as opposed to merely moving on a superficial level. Resistance is explored and perceived as a way to react to a hegemonic, unbalanced, and often hierarchical model of facilitation which is often disguised as providing equally distributed agency and capacity to voice out concerns. Engaging in a critical, socially, and politically aware process allowed seeking and depicting alternatives to power imbalances such as designers deliberately resigning power, welcoming the ever-changing and unpredictable nature of human interrelations and adopting principles from prefigurative politics.

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Berglund, Eeva

Thesis advisor

Mazé, Ramia

Keywords

design, facilitation, politics, power, philosophy, PD, participatory design, resistance

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https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202006073634

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[master] Taiteiden ja suunnittelun korkeakoulu / ARTS