Design Arguments – an examination of how designers argue for their designs

Abstract

To communicate a design can be seen as consisting of at least two aspects: presentation and argumentation. In our research we have taken on the task of studying how practicing interaction designers approach the challenge of presenting and arguing for their designs. We have chosen to label our object of study, or unit of analysis, a design argument. Based on three studies, we have developed a descriptive framework that can be used to describe, analyze, and compare design arguments. The paper ends with some discussions and reflections concerning the potential relevance, use, and implications of a framework of design arguments.