Design Thinking at the Core: Learn New Ways of Thinking and Doing by Reframing

Abstract

We present a theoretical framework about how designers learn new ways of thinking and doing named the reframing theory. The theory underlines why some designers’ creative behaviors endure and some not in face of a conflicting social belief system. In this paper, we first describe the problems that designers and educators face when the cultures that designers attach to and the social logics that they invoke to make sense of their practices are constantly changing. Second, we decode the phenomenon and unpack the problems by drawing on an extensive body of research on cognitive processes, learning theories, and social influences. Third, we propose a theoretical framework to denote that the key to develop and maintain enduring creative behaviors is through reconstruction of one’s perceptions. This theory-oriented paper ends by discussing future directions for educators and researchers, with the aim to advance the research and academic discussions about how to improve design ability.