Exploring the implications of cultural context for design for sustainable behaviour

In this thesis the opportunities for designing products that are less resource intensive during use, in different cultural contexts is investigated. The research was divided into four phases: an extensive literature review, an online scoping study, an intensive qualitative study on laundry behaviours, and an international design competition. The research drew on the background of design for sustainable behaviour, a relatively new field of enquiry concerned with reducing the social and environmental impacts of products during their use. Despite the increasing development of theories to change user behaviour through design, there is a lack of understanding of how different cultural contexts affect behaviour. An extensive literature review established the current thinking on culture, development, and behaviour. The diverse nature of everyday household behaviour from different cultures and the effect it has on household resource consumption was uncovered and was investigated further in an online scoping study. In the study, participants from the UK, Brazil and India answered questions related to the themes of food, water, energy, materials and government schemes. The findings helped to highlight the differences in household behaviours and led to more detailed investigation of laundry behaviours in three sites in the UK, Brazil and India using in-context interviews, observations and household tours. From these findings a series of culturally significant and culturally independent factors were established that can aid designers in understanding behaviours in a given context. A set of design guidelines were also created to facilitate the design of less resource intensive products during use. These were then tested with designers in an international design competition answering a brief to design a less resource intensive laundry process. The research suggested a range of benefits for designers studying other cultures. The guidelines and cultural factors created can help designers to build empathy with users in a given context and boost creative thinking for more sustainable solutions. The research also offered insights into the possibility of, and application for, transferring behaviours between contexts as well as a new understanding of the aspirations of consumers in emerging markets, which could support other theories of sustainable development, such as leapfrogging

Design for Dynamic Challenges: Key Attributes of Designers for Leading Interdisciplinary Research and Projects

The world seems more burdened with large-scale global problems than ever before. One such challenge is to reverse the growing incidence of mental health issues, particularly in our cities. Traditional approaches to tackling such major global challenges has come from specific sectors and siloed organizations. These ‘matters of concern’ however are interdisciplinary in nature, and map closely to what those in the design world have attempted to frame as ‘wicked problems’. This article explores the value of design thinking and focuses on five key attributes that designers have in leading projects that attempt to tackle these major global matters of concern. Namely, that designers are: Naturally interdisciplinary, multi-specialists, comfortable with uncertainty, action-led, and people-centered. A case study is explored where designers have been engaged to tackle mental health issues in Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The paper ends by identifying opportunities and challenges for designers in the future

The effect of culture on sustainable behaviour in a design context

Over the last few decades the consumption patterns of the world’s wealthiest countries has led to the degradation of the environment and exploitation of the world’s finite resources. The developed world currently consumes at a level that requires up to five planets’ resources. The world average consumption, however, is a much lower 1.5 planets’, which is brought down by the lower consumption rates and more sustainable behaviours of developing countries. Culture is of particular importance, as the change in consumer culture in rapidly developing nations will have major consequences on global household resource use. Culture is a key factor in the formation of habits or routines that shape behaviours and lifestyles; however it has not yet been holistically explored in a design context. This paper introduces a crosscultural comparison of everyday household behaviours from an extensive study between the UK, India and Brazil. The findings show that culture plays a significant part on the resource impact of households due to the formation of habits and routines, with particular regard to bathing habits, washing clothes, meat consumption and energy services and the design implications of this are discussed

The opportunities that different cultural contexts create for sustainable design: a laundry care example

Increasing economic growth coupled with rapidly expanding populations in developing countries has led to the emergence of a large "consumer class". This rapid increase in consumption has altered household consumption behaviour and resource use, often adversely affecting their environmental footprint. There is, therefore, a pressing need to understand the effect culture has on product interactions, particularly when designing new products and systems for emerging markets. This paper presents the findings of an in depth user study which set out to explore the effect of culture on household resource use. In depth, qualitative user research was undertaken into the laundry procedure in three regions. In-context interviews, observations and household tours were carried out in 19 households across three sites; The East Midlands, UK; Curitiba, Brazil; and Bangalore, India. Findings show significantly different behaviours in washing techniques, routine, consumption patterns and aspirations. The results inform the development of a methodological cultural resource as well as set of 7 design guidelines to understand the effect of designing interventions for sustainable behaviour in different cultural contexts

The implications of cultural differences in laundry behaviours for design for sustainable behaviour: a case study between the UK, India and Brazil

Traditional research into sustainable design has typically focused on reducing the environmental impact of products during the manufacture and disposal stages of a products' lifecycle. The last decade, however, has seen an explosion of research into understanding and moderating user behaviour during the use phase of a products' lifecycle; often the most resource-intensive phase. One of the biggest factors that affects behaviour is a users cultural context; however, the effect of cultural context on design for sustainable behaviour has had little exploration in this relatively new research field

Foyle Bubbles: How can design reduce suicide attempts using everyday social and civic spaces?

The River Foyle and its environments, banks and bridges in Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland have become associated with poor mental health and emotional wellbeing. ‘Our Future Foyle’ is a collaborative research initiative looking at how health and wellbeing can be designed into the riverfront in the city as a means of suicide prevention. This paper discusses one aspect and output of the research and design process: ‘Foyle Bubbles’ In order to carry out research and engage with the community as a whole the team have been carrying out a series of architectural interventions during city scale events. Using various co-design methods, the project has sought people from across the community, in an area which is known for its past conflict. The research showed the need for shared space along the riverfront. People within the community felt that 'one side of the river gets more than the other side'. This pointed to the need for movable spaces that could respond to the needs of different areas of the waterfront without having to be located in one area. Such spaces could be occupied by a variety of organisations and individuals to create a network and reinforce that community congestion. ‘Foyle Bubbles’ are a series of satellite spaces designed to house arts, commercial, educational and well-being activities around the riverfront; these will act as suicide deterrents and increase footfall and so achieve natural surveillance of the site. These portable pods offer the opportunity for enterprise and community engagement through social and civic functions. This pilot and subsequent measurable data provide the necessary evidence for larger procurement and roll out across the local community and service users with the hope of creating a connected, engaged and positive community on the river with the needs of people in crisis at its heart

Creating an Inclusive Architectural Intervention as a research Space to Explore Community Wellbeing

Abstract: This paper outlines a two-year active design research project coordinated in collaboration with Public Health Northern Ireland and set in the city of Derry/Londonderry to explore how inclusive design methodologies can produce interventions to improve community wellbeing. The research focuses on the waterfront of the River Foyle and how an inclusive architectural intervention challenged the areas’ negative associations. In the last decade, the waterfront has become synonymous with mental health crisis and suicide. This has led to the phrase “I'm ready for the Foyle” becoming embedded within the communities’ language as a colloquial term for stress. This project seeks to extend inclusive design within the community, creating wellbeing spaces around the bridges and banks of the river, with outcomes focused on drawing people to the area as a place of celebration and life affirming activities. The project has helped to develop Inclusive Design as a means of engaging a whole city in the redesign of public spaces for improved wellbeing

The implications of cultural differences in laundry behaviours for design for sustainable behaviour: A case study between the UK, India and Brazil

Traditional research into sustainable design has typically focused on reducing the environmental impact of products during the manufacture and disposal stages of a products' lifecycle. The last decade, however, has seen an explosion of research into understanding and moderating user behaviour during the use phase of a products' lifecycle; often the most resource-intensive phase. One of the biggest factors that affects behaviour is a users cultural context; however, the effect of cultural context on design for sustainable behaviour has had little exploration in this relatively new research field

Foyle Reeds: How can design reduce suicide attempts at a specific place whilst at the same time improving the experience for all?

The impact of a suicide in a public environment has a profound negative effect on those living nearby. This paper outlines a project aiming to tackle this by bringing together researchers, designers and the local community to reduce suicidal behaviour and improve well-being across a section of the Foyle riverfront in Derry Londonderry through suicide prevention interventions. This paper discusses ‘Foyle Reeds’, one element of the project, an art installation and suicide prevention barrier for one of the bridges, designed to protect and engage with the community whilst avoiding any sense of imprisonment. The team created a research space at a number of large city wide events connecting with over 5,000 people through research activities such as voting on key themes and outcomes, comment cards about activities people would like to see around the river and vox-pop interviews about focused topics. The team have conducted in-depth workshops with over 100 individuals, held site visits and observations with key stakeholders from the local statutory and community groups and engaged with people over social media through surveys, reaching over 10,000 people. In-depth interviews with suicideologists and people who have attempted suicide were carried out in parallel. Individuals highlighted several key concerns about the bridge, including the suicide stigma, the wind and the height. A multidisciplinary team of students used these insights to create a range of designs. The concepts were tested using stakeholder workshops and led to the creation of the ‘Foyle Reed’ bridge concept, inspired by the ‘common reeds’ which surround the riverfront. By day, the bridge becomes part of a sculptural trail and provides an element of shelter and safety for pedestrians. At dusk the bridge displays interactive lighting. As the project moves towards the procurement phase, the measurement of impact on the community, and the environment is under way

Integrating human‐centred design into the development of an intervention to improve the mental wellbeing of young women in the perinatal period: the Catalyst project

Background Mental wellbeing during pregnancy and the year after birth is critical to a range of maternal and infant outcomes. Many mental health interventions fail to incorporate stakeholder perspectives. The Catalyst Project aimed to work with key stakeholders in Mozambique to develop interventions and delivery strategies which were in-line with existing evidence and the needs, goals, and priorities of those both directly and indirectly involved in its success. Methods A qualitative, human-centred design approach was utilised. Focus-group discussions, individual interviews, and observations with young women (aged 16–24 years), their families, community leaders, service providers and government were used to better understand the needs, priorities and challenges to mental wellbeing of young women. These findings were triangulated with the literature to determine priority challenges to be addressed by an intervention. Stakeholder workshops were held to identify potential solutions and co-develop an intervention and delivery strategy. Results The 65 participants comprised 23 young pregnant women or new mothers, 12 family members, 19 service providers and 11 staff from the Ministry of Health. Participants highlighted significant uncertainty related to living situations, financial status, education, social support, and limited knowledge of what to expect of the impact of pregnancy and parenting. Family and community support were identified as an important need among this group. The Mama Felíz (Happy Mama) programme was developed with stakeholders as a course to strengthen pregnancy, childbirth and child development knowledge, and build positive relationships, problem-solving and parenting skills. In addition, family sessions address wider cultural and gender issues which impact adolescent maternal wellbeing. Conclusions We have developed an intervention to reduce the risk of poor maternal mental health and gives young mothers hope and skills to make a better life for them and their children by packaging information about the risk and protective factors for maternal mental disorders in a way that appeals to them, their families and service providers. By using human-centred design to understand the needs and priorities of young mothers and the health and community systems in which they live, the resulting intervention and delivery strategy is one that stakeholders view as appropriate and acceptable