Micheli_et_al-2018-Journal_of_Product_Innovation_Management.pdf (925.27 kB)
Doing design thinking: conceptual review, synthesis and research agenda
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-09, 14:50 authored by Pietro Micheli, Sarah J S Wilner, Sabeen Bhatti, Matteo Mura, Michael BeverlandMichael BeverlandDesign thinking has attracted considerable interest from practitioners and academics alike, as it offers a novel approach to innovation and problem solving. However, there appear to be substantial differences between promoters and critics about its essential attributes, applicability and outcomes. To shed light on current knowledge and conceptualizations of design thinking we undertook a multi-phase study. First, a systematic review of the design thinking literature enabled us to identify 10 principal attributes and eight tools and methods. To validate and refine our findings, we then employed a card sorting exercise with professional designers. Finally, we undertook a cluster analysis to reveal structural patterns within the design thinking literature. Our research makes three principal contributions to design and innovation management theory and practice. First, in rigorously deriving 10 attributes and eight essential tools and methods that support them from a broad and multidisciplinary assortment of articles, we bring much needed clarity and validity to a construct plagued by polysemy and thus threatened by “construct collapse.” Second, aided by the identification of perspectives of scholars writing about design thinking, we provide detailed recommendations for relevant topics warranting further study in order to advance theoretical understanding of design thinking and test its applications. Third, we identify the enduring, yet essential, questions that remain unresolved across the extant design thinking literature and that may impede its practical implementation. We also provide suggestions for the theoretic frames, which may help address them, and thus advance the ability of scholars and managers alike to benefit from design thinking's apparent advantages.
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Accepted version
Journal
Journal of Product Innovation ManagementISSN
0737-6782Publisher
WileyExternal DOI
Issue
201802Volume
36Page range
124-148Department affiliated with
- Strategy and Marketing Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2018-09-07First Open Access (FOA) Date
2020-08-16First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2018-09-06Usage metrics
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