Discussing Design

What We Really Need Is Critical ThinkingCritical thinking is the process of taking a statement and determining if it is true or false. When we’re designing something, we’re doing so to meet or achieve some set of objectives. When looking for feedback on our designs, we should be working to understand whether we believe that what has been designed w

This is your chance to open up the dialogue. By asking questions you give yourself more information on which to base your analysis and give stronger, actionable feedback. If done in a noninterrogative way, it shows the designer that you’re genuinely interested in not only his work, but the thinking behind it, which can make discussing it and listen

Central IdeaForming critique is a simple four-step process. What are the design’s objectives? What are the elements of the design related to those objectives? Are those elements effective? Why or why not?

Another common characteristic of bad critique is feedback that is justified by the giver from purely preferential thinking.

Critique should not tell the designer how to act on something or specifically what changes she should make (the directive form of feedback). Good critique avoids problem solving because it can detract and distract from the analytical focus of the discussion.

What is the objective of the design?We want to understand what we’re analyzing the design against so that we can focus our attention on things that are pertinent to the conversation and the improvement and success of the design. Try to identify the objectives that the designer was aiming to accomplish through the choices she made. What are the obje

Talk about strengthsCritique isn’t just about what’s not working.We sometimes have a tendency to focus on negatives, the things that cause us problems, get in our way, and that we’d like to see changed. We often take the positive for granted. In our project meetings and design discussions it’s often no different. We spend the vast majority of time

Avoiding assumptions is simple: ask about them.Yup. Ask yet more questions. Put your assumption out there and ask if it’s accurate. If it is, continue on with your insights. If it isn’t, you might need to adjust your thinking a little.

What can I help you with the most?Gut reactions are going to be informed by experience and expertise, but they aren’t going to be organized because they’re shooting out of your gut instincts. Asking this question helps me to organize my reactions into something designed to address the designer’s immediate stumbling block. Whether the feedback is so

What elements of the design are related to the objective?Next we identify the aspects and elements of the design that we believe work toward or against the objective. Whether the aspect or element is the result of a conscious choice by the designer doesn’t matter. We are analyzing the effectiveness of the whole design as it’s presented.