Norms, Biases and Values in Design
The Royal Danish Academy, the PhD School
Language
English
Lecturer
Kirsten Marie Raahauge
Other Lecturers
Alison Clarke, Masa Kaijita, Roberta Cassi
Course description
The making and shaping of the human environments are never value neutral. Shaping the life conditions for humans, design, architecture, and planning creates the material and spatial conditions under which humans re-reproduce values, norms, social relations and cultural contexts. To design something is to create the fertile grounds for human practices and activities; design both reflects and transforms its societal context.
Either this relationship is overlooked, or it is simply presented as an a-priori positive relationship. Design and normativity are inseparable as are the positive and negative outcomes for humans within such frames.
The course consists of the following core elements:
- Seminar with an Excursion & series of short introductory lectures and debates, involving the course tutors
- Full-day Study Circle with presentations of texts bythe students and discussions of themes and texts in plenary.
- Focused Seminar with PhD student presentations, commented on by Alison J. Clarke and the course
- Peer-to Peer Feedback focused session in which doctoral students exchange ideas on methodological, theoretical approaches and content in groupsn with presentation of outcomes.
The making and shaping of the human environment is never value-neutral. Design, architecture and planning create the material and spatial conditions under which humans re-reproduce values, norms, social relations, and cultural contexts. To design something is to create the fertile grounds for human practices and activities; design both reflects and transforms its societal context. Often this symbiotic relationship is entirely overlooked, or it is simply presented as an a priori positive relationship. Design and normativity are inseparable, as are the positive and negative outcomes for humans operating within such frameworks.
The course has three levels: Firstly, it offers an operational framing of critical-creative theories and concepts from the humanities, social sciences, and critical design thinking. Secondly, there are illustrated case studies drawn from the tutors’ research encompassing approaches ranging from design studies, design anthropology, interior and domestic design, to critical disability studies. Thirdly, the course requires participants to present their research projects within the conceptual framing of 'design and normativity' with expert feedback from the course tutors
Dates
30/11 - 3/12
Venue
TBD:
Physical attendance/online
Or
Physical attendance only
ECTS
5
Application deadline
03/10-2027 via https://katalog.kglakademi.dk/phdtilmeld.php