Design Thinking toolkit
It is possible to stimulate innovation and creative thinking on both individual level and in groups, using tested and proven techniques and methodologies which aim to promote and generate creativity, break established schemes, stimulate the imagination and, regardless of the method, improve the conditions in which creative ideas are produced. Tools and methods have also been developed to overcome the conceptual blocks, i.e. "mental walls" that block a person from correctly understanding a problem and devising an appropriate solution. Although the primary cause of conceptual blocks is the lack of mental flexibility, many other types of blocks have been identified, among which are emotional, environmental, cultural, and intellectual (Roth, 1973).
In relation to what you learned, everyone can be creative, so creativity can be studied and developed using tested techniques and experiments to stimulate creative abilities and drive the design process. This lesson focuses on Design Thinking Toolkits! They provide a practical starting point to support you in thinking through a problem or challenge that you may encounter in your research, organization, or even life. Whether you need specific Design Thinking Tools or a complete Design Thinking Toolkit, this is the class to start.
Some of the most known toolkits are embedded in different lessons of this MOOC based on the IDEActivity method, so to enrich your knowledge about toolkits, here are listed other resources. You can try to identify and combine different tools based on your needs.
- The Design Thinking Bootcamp Bootleg by Stanford D.School is an overview of some of the most-used tools (original). The Bootleg is an active toolkit to support your design thinking practice. The guide is not just to read – go out in the world and try these tools by yourself.
- Collective Action Toolkit by Frog Design consists of activities and methods that enable groups of people anywhere to organize, collaborate and create solutions for problems affecting their community.
- Service Design Tool is an open collection of tools and tutorials that helps dealing with complex design challenges.
- Accelerate Innovation by Advanced Concepts Resources to help you solve your biggest problems.
- Innowiz method by Howest University of Applied Science combines a four-step-method with a wide range of inspirational techniques. This gives you the opportunity to tackle your challenges most efficiently.
- Design Thinking Toolkit for Educators by IDEO contains a design thinking process overview, methods, and instructions that help educators put design thinking into action, and the Designer's Workbook to support their design challenges.
References
- Brown, T. (2009). Change by Design: How Design Thinking Transforms Organizations and Inspires Innovation, HarperBusiness.
- Video:
- Roth, B. (1973). Design Process and Creativity
- Cevic Onar, S. & Öztaysi, B. (2022), An Introduction to Creative Thinking Tools and Techniques