Cognitive Ergonomics in the Communication Design Process: Results from a Study Carried Out with a Sample of Students

Abstract

The paper here presented is part of a PhD research that focused in the communication design process. The creative process and the design process even though having many simultaneously moments are very different. While the former has a shorter duration and is rather chaotic, the second is longer and tends to be more organized. To understand the design process is essential to identify the decisive factors in the two different processes, therefore we have conducted a study with a group of thirty-three students from the Faculty of Architecture from the University of Lisbon, which aimed to identify the cognitive ergonomics factors that contributed to both processes.Our qualitative analytical line was carried out through the data collected with two research methods. The first method was applied in two questionnaires, marking temporally, the beginning and end of data collection. The first questionnaire aimed to establish a starting point, gathering information about the individual design process from students, prior to the course, whereas the second questionnaire sought to understand what had changed after working with the proposed methodology. The second research method was the dairy, which for this study was in the form of a graphic dairy; a tool much used for graphic and communication designers. With this we guarantee that the method was easy to grasp by the sample, and particularly suitable for students to make their recordings. On the other hand for the research, the graphic dairy, allowed us to have access to an individual internal and continuous process, which otherwise would have been difficult to witness. This study provided us with two types of results the confirmations and recommendations, which were summarily divided in 4 areas: the methodology, the process of design, research methods and the graphic dairy as a tool.

Keywords: Communication design; sustainability; design process; design research and design research methods.

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1001281