Tag John Dewey

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Dialectically If Not Doctrinally

Aug 18, ’10 10:16 PM

Professor Lovejoy remarks that “dialogue, discussion, and the interaction of two or more minds is the very essence of the [dialectical] method” by which philosophy could hope to make progress … I had Professor Lovejoy’s essay in mind when I wrote Dialectic in 1927 and projected a dialectical undertaking on the part of philosophers that would enable them to make progress in the pursuit of truth. This should occur before they engaged in argument with one another about their doctrinal disagreements. They could at least agree dialectically, if not doctrinally; that is, they could agree about the issues that confronted them.

Mortimer Adler, Four Dimensions of Philosophy, in the Prologue, p. xxii

I find it interesting that Adler differentiates looking at the world as a dialectician from a philosopher. He states that to proceed dialectically,

… one must deal with all the differing views one encounters with complete impartiality and neutrality – that is, without favoring one point of view against another. One must be point of viewless in treating all points of view. p. xxiv

Immediately following this thought, he writes,

To be a philosopher, one must make up one’s own mind about where the truth lies on the great issues that have filled the pages of philosophical controversy. p. xxiv

My goals for the next 4 (hopefully just 4 although I’ve heard that the average in my program is 6-8 years. Yikes!) years are as follows:

  1. Be humble and look at the design/management world as a dialectician. Before I can form my own point of view, gain a knowledge of the issues. The beauty of dialectics is that two opposing view points can come together in agreement on an issue (and they can be on opposite ends of the issue).
  2. Formulate a philosophy of design and management.

Another great influence on Adler was his reading of Jacques Maritain’s An Introduction to Philosophy. Adler distilled 4 main insights from this book. What’s interesting for me is the similarity between philosophy (which Adler says is everybody’s business) and design. Substituting “design” for Adler’s usage of “philosophy” seems to bring even more insight for me in these 4 points:

  • Only in ancient Greece was philosophy (or design) distinct and separate from the religious beliefs and practices of the local culture, and totally unaffected by them.
    (This has personal meaning for me because my faith is very important to my identity. Yet, in the realm of design there can be a suspension of my personal beliefs in order to understand other designers, manager and employees, and clients)
  • In relation to modern empirical science, philosophy (or design) is autonomous in the sense that its principles and conclusions are not in any way dependent on the current state or the advances in the empirical sciences.
    (As Adler distinguishes the naturalist framework from philosophy, I too feel the need to differentiate between empirical science from design AND management)
  • Philosophy (or design) has a method of its own that enables it to answer questions that cannot be answered by the method of the empirical sciences, of historical research, or of mathematics.
    (Adler believes the 4 main branches of knowledge are historical research/scholarly research in the field of humanities, empirical sciences, mathematical thought, and philsophy. I also feel that design has methods of its own that demand its own kind of exploration)
  • While it corrects and refines some of the opinions and convictions held by common sense, philosophy (or design) is nevertheless continuous with common sense and elucidates its deepest convictions by providing their rational basis and elaboration.
    (By common sense, Adler is referring to the human experience – hence, philosophy has a role in contemporary human experience. Dewey calls this macroscopic experience. Design, at the end of the day, has something to contribute in this world because it, too, is a fundamental human activity and aligns with human experience – regardless of geography or culture)
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Notes to Self

Dec 20, ’08 9:43 PM

Just spent the afternoon reading and had a few random thoughts:

1. A THOUGHT ON GOING TO THE SOURCE

The origin or primary source of something is very important. Hence, knowing the arts (what guides one’s thinking) is just as important than trying to learn all the methodologies that one can choose from to understand a specific subject matter. It’s like having a framework.

Some examples:

  • When looking for concepts for my thesis, I came upon “assimilation/integration” as a possible process in which culture takes shape. This came from a reading of a book on Asian American cultural politics. I was also vaguely familiar with Raymond Williams. However, Dick’s suggestion to go to the source of both authors’ inspiration, Antonio Gramsci, provided a greater insight into a more fundamental concept – “hegemony,” a complex yet fascinating topic. [download thesis]
  • Donald Schon’s “designerly ways of knowing, thinking, and acting” = repackaging of John Dewey’s thoughts on “Having an Experience.”
  • Herb Simon’s thoughts on the artificial echo Aristotle’s thoughts on poetics.
  • Thoughts around “service design” started over a hundred years ago (ex. Kodak’s “You press the button, we do the rest“).

2. A THOUGHT ON DESIGNING PRACTICE & DESIGNING MANAGEMENT

Forlizzi writes that “Participatory Design” and “Experience Prototyping” are attitudinal rather than procedural/prescriptive methods [by Forlizzi]. Is this the same way “attitude” is used by Boland & Collopy when they describe design attitude v. decision attitude in Managing as Designing? [see previous post]

Forlizzi writes, “… the Product Ecology approach involves doing fieldwork over an extended period of time” in her article to show that a comprehensive understanding of people takes time. This is an important point about design research.

However in the context of the professional world, this is not as easy to implement. Due to constraints, such as budget issues, there’s a disconnect in taking our thoughts towards action. Perhaps designing management, with a similar attitude, may help in bridging the gap between what we would like to have done to what we can get done in our organizations.

3. A THOUGHT ON USER NEEDS

A lot of people talk about being obsessed with finding and identifying user needs. When new products create new habits (ex. we need toothpaste to support the activity of brushing our teeth but this is a 20th century product that didn’t exist in, say, the 15th century), have we created a new “need” or is this something that’s been a latent need in individuals all along? If this is an example of a latent need, is there an infinite amount of needs we can design for? Probably not. Or maybe there are certain core needs that can be addressed differently with the changing times. Hmm. [see previous post on habits]

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Best Pizza Ordering Experience Ever

Oct 2, ’08 8:03 PM

Oh, how the Ninja Turtles would be envious of what’s possible today.

I just ordered Domino’s Pizza with my sister-in-law and thought I was going through a typical transaction over the web. After the credit card payment, however, I was brought to this flash-based interface on the confirmation page:

30 Minute Guarantee Dynamic Interface from Dominos.com

30 Minute Guaranteeing, Dynamic Interface from Dominos.com

While we waited, there was also a “Are you a Republican/Democrat?” poll to interact with.

Usually, once I’ve purchased a product, I leave the computer or close the screen but I’m still here, waiting eagerly to see how my pizza is progressing. They’ve broken it down into 5 easy steps: order placed, prep, bake, box, delivery. And here’s also a nice touch:

Yes, bake that pie, Corine

Yes, bake that pie, Corine.

What a nice personal touch, adds a nice human element (kinda makes me want to go to Domino’s right now just to see if there’s really a Corine there). But now, the final touch:

Steve is on his way!

Steve is on his way!

Methinks I hear the doorbell. I’m gonna go say hi to Steve and watch the VP debate. What a delightful pizza ordering experience!

Edit on 10/3/08:
Ordering pizza, or buying some other commercial product online, has now become a mundane process. As Goffman would say it, we have a transactional process of “initiation, maintenance, and leave-taking.” It’s the last phase of “leave-taking” that really interests me. In much of life, we greet people, get to know them a bit, and at the end of the day, say goodbye.
Dewey calls his form “conception, development, and fulfillment.” Many times, people will make a purchase and once they give out their credit card, the confirmation page is a just another moment in their day where they transition to another activity and mode of thinking. However, this Dominos pizza tracker took it beyond just a “leave-taking” stage. I actually stayed in Dominos land (Dominos became my environment because I had intent to stay) and we had a type of conversation. I don’t know what I exactly mean by that, but it was something very different from other transactions I’ve had before.

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