Skip to main content

Verbal Stimuli in Design Creativity: A Case-study with Japanese Sound-symbolic Words

  • Conference paper
Design Creativity 2010

Abstract

Design practitioners not only manipulate images but also words. In this paper, we propose to investigate the role of language in design and more specifically the potential for linguistic stimulation on creative thinking. Through an interdisciplinary approach in design science and linguistics, we propose to examine the role of Japanese sound-symbolic words in the context of creative design thinking. In fact, this paper reports a unique characteristic of a specific language, Japanese, and comments on its relevancy in the context of design practice: sound-symbolic words in Japanese (more precisely, psychomimes) help expressing and conveying a concept, as an emotion or a feeling, that is otherwise difficult to verbalize and thus they appear to be useful in designers’ practice. An on-going experiment is presented here.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 219.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 279.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 299.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Akita K, (2009) A Grammar of Sound-Symbolic Words in Japanese: Theoretical Approaches to Iconic and Lexical Properties of Mimetics. Ph.D Thesis (Linguistics), Kobe University, March 2009

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong A, (2006) Concept formation as knowledge accumulation: A computational linguistics study. Artificial Intelligence for Engineering Design, Analysis and Manufacturing 20:35–53

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dong A, (2007) The enactment of design through language. Design Studies 28(1):5–21

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dong A, Kleinsmann M, Valkenburg R, (2009) Affect-incognition through the language of appraisals. Design Studies 30(2):138–153

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fujisawa N, Obata F, Takada M, Iwamiya S, (2006) Estimation of the subjective impression of auditory imagery evoked by 2 mora Japanese onomatopoeias. Proceedings of the 2006 Spring Meeting of Acoustical Society of Japan, 419–420

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldschmidt G, Litan Sever A, (2009) From text to design solutions: Inspiring design ideas with text. Proceedings of ICED’09, International Conference on Engineering Design. Stanford, August 24-27, 2009

    Google Scholar 

  • Gomi T, (2004) An illustrated dictionnary of Japanese onomatopeic expressions. Ed. Kodansha

    Google Scholar 

  • Hasada R, (2002) Meanings of Japanese Sound-symbolic emotion words. in Emotions in Crosslinguistic Perspective. Harkins J, Wierzbicka A (Eds)

    Google Scholar 

  • Imai M, Kita S, Nagumo M, Okada H, (2008) Sound symbolism facilitates early verb learning. Cognition 109(1):54–65

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mougenot C, Aucouturier JJ, Yamanaka T, Watanabe K, (2010) Comparing the effects of visual and auditory stimuli in design creativity. Proceedings of the Third International Workshop on Kansei, Fukuoka, Feb 22-23

    Google Scholar 

  • Mougenot C, Bouchard C, Aoussat A, Westerman SJ, (2008) Inspiration, Images and Design: An Investigation of Designers’ Information Gathering Strategies. Journal of Design Research 7(4):331–351

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagai Y, Noguchi H, (2002) How Designers Transform Keywords into Visual Images. Proceedings of C&C’02 Creativity and Cognition, Loughborough, UK.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nagai Y, Taura T, Mukai F, (2009) Concept blending and dissimilarity: factors for creative concept generation process. Design Studies 30(6):648–675

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ogawa T, Nagai Y, Ikeda M, (2009) An ontological approach to designers’ idea explanation style: Towards supporting the sharing of kansei-ideas in textile design. Advanced Engineering Informatics 23(2):157–164

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osaka N, Osaka M, (2005) Striatal reward areas activated by implicit laughter induced by mimic words in humans: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study. Neuroreport 16(15):1621–1624

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  • Rohrer T, (2001) Understanding through the body: fMRI and ERP investigations into the neurophysiology of cognitive semantics. Talk presented at the 2001 International Cognitive Linguistics Association, Santa Barbara: University of California

    Google Scholar 

  • Takahashi K, Mitsuhashi H, Norieda S, Sendoda M, Murata K, Watanabe K, (2010) Japanese Onomatopoeias and Sound Symbolic Words in Describing Interpersonal Communication. Proceedings of KEER 2010, Int. Conf. on Kansei Engineering and Emotion Research. Paris, March 2-4

    Google Scholar 

  • Vigliocco G, Kita S, (2006) Language-specific properties of the lexicon: Implications for learning and processing. Language and Cognitive Processes 21(7–8):790–816

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2011 Springer-Verlag London Limited

About this paper

Cite this paper

Mougenot, C., Watanabe, K. (2011). Verbal Stimuli in Design Creativity: A Case-study with Japanese Sound-symbolic Words. In: Taura, T., Nagai, Y. (eds) Design Creativity 2010. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-224-7_30

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-224-7_30

  • Publisher Name: Springer, London

  • Print ISBN: 978-0-85729-223-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-0-85729-224-7

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics