Team: Sena Çerçi, Stacey Pitsillides, Thomas Dylan, Marta Cecchinato (Northumbria University); John Vines (University of Edinburgh)

Funder: Northumbria University

Timeframe: 2018-2021

This PhD research, led by Sena Çerçi, investigates the narratives and practices around design Probes in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) to understand implicit practices and complexities around conducting design-led research in the field. By locating the prior conceptual and methodological discussions surrounding Probes in contemporary design-led research in HCI, it problematizes the plurality of design-led research practices that are taken-for-granted under the umbrella term of ‘Research through Design’. This research expands on the under-articulated aspects of reflexivity around Probes as a designerly approach to research through a series of empirical studies with design researchers who have used and published on Probes.