Abstract
Instead of viewing it as a professional pursuit with a central, social mission, good design may also be viewed as a technical exercise in optimal problem solving. This understanding of good design is the dominant perspective in most engineering and other technical programs. Decision theorist Herbert Simon’s influential characterization of good design as optimal problem solving is described and explored. On this view, good design is rational design in the sense that any rational being would want designs that are objectively optimal. Simon’s view is highly general in the kind of design problems it applies to and what constitutes an optimal solution. However, it also involves unrealistic assumptions about the knowledge and objectivity of problem solvers. A more realistic characterization of problem solving is provided with the concept of boundedly rational design. On this view, increasing knowledge is key to good design. This view sets the scene for the following chapters in which knowledge derived from the social sciences is examined for its relevance to good design.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Saval (2014).
- 2.
The Economist (2016).
- 3.
Kaufman (2014).
- 4.
Varjo et al. (2015).
- 5.
Simon (1981), p. 129.
- 6.
Simon (1981), pp. 134–135.
- 7.
Simon (1981), pp. 135–136.
- 8.
Simon (1981), p. 37.
- 9.
Simon (1981), p. 139.
- 10.
Simon (1981), p. 150.
- 11.
The Canadian Encyclopedia (2015).
- 12.
Valdes-Dapena (2013).
- 13.
Pearson (2013).
References
Kaufman, L. (2014). Google got it wrong. The open-office trend is destroying the workplace. Washington Post. Dec 30. https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/12/30/google-got-it-wrong-the-open-office-trend-is-destroying-the-workplace/ (accessed Jan 12, 2015).
Pearson, G. (2013). Happy Arachtober! There are spiders in your car!. Wired. Oct 18. http://www.wired.com/2013/10/happy-arachtober-there-are-spiders-in-your-car/ (accessed Aug 12, 2016).
Saval, N. (2014). Cubed: a secret history of the workplace. New York: Doubleday.
Simon, H. A. (1981). Sciences of the artificial (2nd ed.). Cambrige, MA: The MIT Press.
The Canadian Encyclopedia. (2015). Inuktitut words for snow and ice. Historica Canada. July 9. http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/inuktitut-words-for-snow-and-ice/ (accessed Sep 12, 2015).
The Economist. (2016). The collaboration curse: The fashion for making employees collaborate has gone too far. The Economist. Jan 23. http://www.economist.com/news/business/21688872-fashion-making-employees-collaborate-has-gone-too-far-collaboration-curse (accessed Jan 25, 2016).
Valdes-Dapena, V. (2013). 870 k Toyotas recalled for spider-related problem. CNN Money. Oct 17, 2013. http://money.cnn.com/2013/10/17/autos/toyota-spiders-airbag-recall/index.html (accessed Oct 29, 2013).
Varjo, J., Hongisto, V., Haapakangas, A., Maula, H., Koskela, H., & Hyönä, J. (2015). Simultaneous effects of irrelevant speech, temperature and ventilation rate on performance and satisfaction in open-plan offices. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 44, 16–33.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Shelley, C. (2017). Rational Design. In: Design and Society: Social Issues in Technological Design. Studies in Applied Philosophy, Epistemology and Rational Ethics, vol 36. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-52515-0_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-52515-0_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-52514-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-52515-0
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)