Characterizing the Use of Contextual Factors During Engineering Design Processes

Abstract

A critical objective of engineering design is to ensure consideration of all factors necessary for successful implementation, including tailoring to the broader social, economic, environmental, and industrial context in which a solution must operate. Although neglecting to incorporate context has been cited as a common cause of project failure, “context” remains abstractly defined and its use during design processes is under-characterized. The concept of “context” can be divided into sub-classifications called contextual factors, i.e., characteristics of a potential solution’s broad use setting, which can be incorporated throughout an engineering design process, i.e., used to inform design decisions. To begin investigating the use of context in engineering design, I first asked the question: How do researchers report using context during design processes in engineering design literature? Findings from a systematic literature review highlighted a severe lack of consensus on the definitions of context and its reported use within the engineering design community. Next, I asked: What contextual factors do engineering designers incorporate into their design processes? And, how do engineering designers incorporate contextual factors into their design processes? To address these questions, I conducted a series of qualitative studies investigating both novice and expert designer practice in global health applications using phenomenological interviewing, deductive and inductive analysis, and comparative inquiry. Findings from these studies uncovered specific characterizations of how participants incorporated contextual factors into their design processes, including a model that aggregates expert designers’ approaches. While novices focused on the immediate surroundings and prioritized directly measurable contextual factors, experts were not satisfied with their understanding of context until they felt they had a deep intuition for it. In addition to incorporating contextual factors into conceptual and detailed design decisions, experienced designers accounted for contextual factors by regularly reframing their design problems and making implementation decisions throughout their development processes. However, novices viewed problem framing and implementation as largely outside the scope of their design work. Findings also suggest that engineers should rely on broad stakeholder feedback when formal evaluations are too difficult or costly. Ultimately, this work proposes an advancement to the definition of context and a framework for using contextual factors in engineering design. The framework includes two primary concepts: (1) classifications, i.e., defined categories of context called “contextual factors,” and (2) applications, i.e., specific strategies and methods for using and incorporating contextual factors into various design stages. Importantly, these recommendations suggest that applications of contextual factors occur throughout all stages in a design process, in a more varied and continuous way than existing recommendations suggest. Recommendations for improving the use of contextual factors are provided, such as increasing emphasis on political factors and using prototypes to accelerate the incorporation of context. Two recommendations for engineering design pedagogy are recommended: (1) a framework to support skill development related to incorporating contextual factors during a curricular design project and (2) a series of narratives for use in a classroom setting. Ultimately, the findings from this research, including the advancement of design science theory and its pedagogical implications, have the potential to improve design practice and ultimately impact beneficiaries broadly through the creation of more contextually appropriate products, processes, and systems.