6 User Activity Matters: An Activity Theory …
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Fig. 6.2 The overview of the sustainable ACD toolkit prototype development and evaluation step
‘design approach’, ‘design method’; Group3 (sustainability-focused)—‘sustainability’, ‘sustainable behavior change’. Scopus was used as the search platform.
Given the scope of this paper, we only summarized the preliminary review results
(cut-off date for the review is 28th June 2019) which were used in the initial concept
development stage of the ACD toolkit.
6.3.1 Use of AT in the Context of Design for Sustainability
AT can contribute to analyzing and framing sustainable design problems based on
the following six theoretical concepts:
Mediating tools: The most fundamental concept of AT is that human activities
are mediated by artefacts. The mediating artefacts can be external, such as hammers,
phones, and computers, which are intended to be used as physical tools. The tools
can also be internal and abstract, such as signs, models, and language (Gay and
Hembrooke 2004; Kaptelinin et al. 1999). However, as design practices focus on
creating products or services that have a material form (be it physical or digital),
the underlying influence on user behavior is often neglected in the design process
(Wever et al. 2008).
When the concept of mediating tools is used in the design of sustainable products
and services, the explicit accommodation of material and immaterial perspectives of
design can enable designers to consider creating impacts not only on the material
production or technological aspects, but also on user behavior, norms, knowledge,
and perceptions when using the artefacts, thus opening up the windows of opportunity
for designers to simultaneously improve the sustainability performance of both the
designed products/services and user behavior (Hoffmann et al. 2017; Novoa et al.
2018; Querol et al. 2015; Timmis 2014). We encourage designers to reflect on: How
can the designed artefacts influence the way people carry out their activities? How do
83
Fig. 6.2 The overview of the sustainable ACD toolkit prototype development and evaluation step
‘design approach’, ‘design method’; Group3 (sustainability-focused)—‘sustainability’, ‘sustainable behavior change’. Scopus was used as the search platform.
Given the scope of this paper, we only summarized the preliminary review results
(cut-off date for the review is 28th June 2019) which were used in the initial concept
development stage of the ACD toolkit.
6.3.1 Use of AT in the Context of Design for Sustainability
AT can contribute to analyzing and framing sustainable design problems based on
the following six theoretical concepts:
Mediating tools: The most fundamental concept of AT is that human activities
are mediated by artefacts. The mediating artefacts can be external, such as hammers,
phones, and computers, which are intended to be used as physical tools. The tools
can also be internal and abstract, such as signs, models, and language (Gay and
Hembrooke 2004; Kaptelinin et al. 1999). However, as design practices focus on
creating products or services that have a material form (be it physical or digital),
the underlying influence on user behavior is often neglected in the design process
(Wever et al. 2008).
When the concept of mediating tools is used in the design of sustainable products
and services, the explicit accommodation of material and immaterial perspectives of
design can enable designers to consider creating impacts not only on the material
production or technological aspects, but also on user behavior, norms, knowledge,
and perceptions when using the artefacts, thus opening up the windows of opportunity
for designers to simultaneously improve the sustainability performance of both the
designed products/services and user behavior (Hoffmann et al. 2017; Novoa et al.
2018; Querol et al. 2015; Timmis 2014). We encourage designers to reflect on: How
can the designed artefacts influence the way people carry out their activities? How do