Method
Remove the human from the centre and depart from the idea of having a centre at all. Step into a more nuanced sphere of design and include the existences, needs, and views beyond those of the human actors. Decentred Design sparks a profound conversation on designers’ roles and positionalities in their practices that eventually guides practitioners to realise our power and responsibilities that shall extend far beyond just the realm of the human users, and cover those on society, culture, and the environment.
Broaden your perspective by inclusively defining the target audience. To disrupt the repeating cycle, embrace diverse cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, values, and viewpoints.
Design is shaped by non-human elements, from landscapes to digital files, influencing spatial and temporal contexts. Acknowledging these actants empowers designers to anticipate impacts and recognise the value beyond monetary considerations.
Work with the design process, perceive it not as a rigid structure but as a dynamic entity with its own movement, entwined in ever-shifting temporal and local circumstances. Observe, recognise, and partner with the design process to enable it to evolve purposefully.
Recognising more actants within the design process challenges the traditional notion of “the designer.” The power dynamics embedded in the ever-changing network of relationships among actants prompt shifts in designers’ roles. Designers’ identities are not fixed within specific actant groups; rather, they are temporary states arising from these fluid relationships. Consequently, the concept of “the designer” evolves alongside the changes in power dynamics.
Imagine scenarios where the main stakeholders are not humans, or what it would be like to design for a completely maginalised group. Question and rebalance power distribution and ensure that non-humans actively participate and influence design decisions.
Actively listen to or observe the needs and viewpoints of all actants. Use tools like empathy mapping and journey mapping to identify patterns of pain points. Try to understand the needs, values and desires of actants as various as possible.
Develop systems that offer chances throughout the design process for every actant, human and non-human, to assume the role of a designer. Try employing methods like decision matrices that account for non-human's agency to ensure non-human actants are also active participants.
Actants exist within their own network of relationships, collectively forming systems that extend beyond their immediate surroundings. A digital file, for example, relies on various elements such as storage space, encryption codes for security, networks for embedding, and established connections. It also has the ability to transform formats and be transferred to different spaces. This journey highlights the file’s co-dependency and, to some extent, coexistence within surrounding interactive patterns. While this codependency enables system functionality, each actant possesses agency that can disrupt the system when its needs are unmet.
Recognise that actants exist within interconnected networks that extend beyond immediate boundaries. Acknowledge the interdependence of these relationships to estimate the impact your design may have on them.
Understand that digital or physical products exists in context. Files, for example, rely on various elements, such as storage, encryption, and networks. Recognise the co-dependency and coexistence of such actant with humans within these interactive patterns.
Realise that each actant possesses agency, capable of disrupting the system when its needs go unmet. Design with the understanding that all actants have their own influence.
