Universal Methods of Design

Revised and updated, this new edition presents 125 research methods for design in a concise and accessible format, with new information on digital design and software and 25 new chapters.

This expanded and revised version of the best-selling Universal Methods of Design is a comprehensive reference that provides a thorough and critical presentation of 125 research methods, synthesis/analysis techniques, and research deliverables for human-centered design. The text and accompanying photos and graphics of this classic resource are delivered in a concise and accessible format perfect for designers, educators, and students. Information can be easily referenced and utilized by cross-disciplinary teams in nearly any design project. This new, expanded edition includes a comprehensive index for referencing. Earlier chapters have been updated to include new information on digital design and software for A/B testing, content analysis, and territory maps. The addition of 25 chapters brings fresh relevance to the text with new and innovative design methods, such as subtraction and position maps, that have emerged since the first edition.

Universal Methods of Design distills each method down to its essence, in a format that helps design teams select and implement the most credible research methods suited to their design culture.

About the Author

Bruce Hanington is the co-author of the best-selling Universal Methods of Design and an associate professor, director of graduate studies, and former program chair of industrial design in the School of Design at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He has dedicated his teaching and research to methods and practices for human-centered design, with an emphasis on design ethnography, participatory design, and the meaning of form in context. He has consulted on design projects with GE Appliance and Johnson and Johnson, and his work has been published in Design Issues, The Design Journal, and Interactions, with chapters in Designing Inclusive Futures and Design and Emotion: The Experience of Everyday Things.Bella Martin, co-author of the best-selling Universal Methods of Design, is a design practitioner and independent consultant in Atlanta, Georgia, where she brings her expertise for design research methods to companies who are new to user-centered design, but eager to give their users a voice in the design process. She holds a Master of Design in Communication Planning and Information Design from Carnegie Mellon University, where she first began her ongoing work in visualizing user-centered research methods.