Theory

Theory

Theory refers to any system of ideas that helps explain or speculate about why we do the things we do. Of course, designers regularly read and incorporate theory from other areas of study, such as art, architecture, economics, anthropology, sociology, technology, or science, but reading and writing design theory is how designers speak to each other about design to discover commonalities beyond day-to-day questions about business or technique. Theory also shifts and builds with culture and technology, as new relationships, tools, and modes of consumption create new questions.

Theory is often presented as the opposite of practice, but in reality it comes from practice, as designers encounter the same questions over and over again in seemingly unrelated situations. What’s the influence of technology or tools on aesthetics? Should designers regard themselves as authors? Do designers have ethical responsibilities? Are there universal truths in design, or is everything relative? What is the role of the designer if everyone can now create and distribute work?

Theory also overlaps with history in that changing economic and social conditions bring about new ways of thinking about the work. Reading or listening to theory from the past and thinking about those relationships enables designers to better see their own moment in the present and to ask good questions about how design should respond to what is happening now.

Each new era, however, brings its own questions about the past, the present, and the future. Some theory speculates about that future, because projecting into the future is one of the better ways to reflect on the decisions we make in the present. What new technologies, or what new commercialization of an existing technology, will change how we interact with information and each other in the future? How will changing demographics of audiences or of designers affect how we approach our work? Will a particular design pattern cause significant social or cultural shifts if it is widely adopted?

Speaking or writing about these scenarios is a way to prototype them before they happen. This kind of thinking also allows us to reflect on how what we design, and what we participate in as designers, is not just a result of social, historical, and cultural forces but can and will drive them as well.