I am working on a piece about the tensions between spontaneity and planning in the design process. In particular I am searching for an overview of strategies to alleviate these tensions. Do you have any suggestions for key-papers on this issue?
Many years ago I addressed a very similar issue from the perspective of conceptual design. I counter-positioned the waterflow models (planned systematics) and the path finding models (intuitive creativity). This work can be seen as an indication that the planning and intuition problematic appears on multiple levels (individual, team, organization).
organization and spontaneity is a chapter of Raniero Pansieri work, an aaproach from the point of view of Marx around the dinamics of workers territory and production, the father of italian movement of autonomy, class autonomy, the relationship with our domain is in the survey, like http://voiceimitator.blogspot.it/2009/10/pier-vittorio-aureli-project-of.html
My setting is completely different from yours. I am an education Pedagogical/Curriculum Planner, talking about Teaching Learning and Staff Professional Development programs using innovatively best practice while yours is all about Physical Sciences. In Physics and Newton's Law of Motion applies the terminology 'Tension' slightly differently from the Economist with 'Supply and Demand and Price Equilibrium etc. The terminology 'Tension' is a global vocabulary. It can be translated into different discourse.
My use of the word tension is not routed in the psysical sciences, but in its use in common english, I guess. Planning and spontenaity are two things designers aspire, but they can not easily be obtained by the same means. As such there is a balancing act going on. I am interested in the strategies designers employ to find the balance.
You might be interested in looking at different strategies depending on different geographical altitude as to draw interesting examples of how the design process can be regulated. For example in Singapore, the workshops organized by the researchers at the university for design firms are a part of the development of design framework of green spaces for country neighborhoods.
I am by no means an expert. However, I am asking a similar question for my undergraduate thesis. One book I am using a lot is "Good to Great" by Jim Collins. Where it is discussed in detail when an idea should or should not be pursued and what kind of ideas are healthy for a business. It takes case studies from many many companies that out performed the S&P by at least 3 times, sometimes 7. Then it compares them with their direct competitors (Ex. Coke and Pepsi) and explains why one failed and the other did so well.
I am hoping that you are reading some of my seminar papers/essays . If you do, I am pretty sure you will know and aspire to read Braden and others that I have referenced. Please read, all my Dora Jimela Kialo- on this medium.
such tensions depend very much on the area of "design" - graphic design (promoting a skate brand vs. hospital guidance system), industrial design (toaster vs. portable breathing apparatus), transportation design (urban SUV vs. aircraft interior), user interface design (smartwatch vs. refinery distilling apparatus controls) - you get the idea. I would think that sweeping analyses and judgements on "design" are always in danger of losing focus, meandering sans demarcations, since today "design" can be almost anything.
In any case, it's an interesting topic you're working on!
I do certainly agree Design is a broad term and it is easy to overgeneralize. If we make a rough distinction between more creative design professions (such as graphic design) and more technical engineering design professions (such as mechanical engineering) my interest is in areas that touch both worlds, such as interaction design and product design. In this sense strong literature suggestions from either these senses of the word can be useful.
Thanks, I understand. Regarding the perceived dichotomy of "planning" vs. "spontaneity", I don't know any good books or papers. From the world of fine arts and modern classical music, however, one can find examples where planning is the framework for spontaneity to occur, for example in the work of Sophie Calle or Anish Kapoor or Luigi Nono or John Cage.
Maybe you come up with the first proper publication on the topic regarding product design? Interviews with designers working in agencies would be great. They, compared to designer-auteurs, probably experience what you are researching first hand, on a daily basis?
My interest for many years has been to assist engineering design processes, by providing a theory-based framework of structues, properties, life cycle, etc. to support understanding, so that spontaneous and intuitive mind-action can work towards solving engineering design problems -- with demonstration case examples. My publications to date (and they are my total work, no more papers or conference contributions) are contained in my Profile on ResearchGate. Hope this helps.