Defining the topic for this blog has been an on-going challenge for me since I started blogging in December 2004. And that is reflected in the way my blog has evolved over the years. Starting out as a simple way of sharing my experiences as …
Read MoreReflections on anthropology in the design process
A couple of weeks ago, I went to Ã?rhus to attend one of the rare meetings of the Danish Design Anthropology network (kindly arranged by Johanne Mose Entwistle and Rikke Aarhus). The over-arching theme for the day was assessing ethnographic methods for user engagement in …
Read MoreOnline Ethnography
There was an interesting attempt at a discussion on the Anthrodesign mailing list recently as to what online ethnography actually entails. But the discussion never really seemed to get off the ground, and effectively had died by the time I posted my comment. So I …
Read MoreDesign ethnography deliverables
We had a great meeting in the Danish Design Anthropology network this Thursday. We’re getting some good energy into the meetings, going beyond the usual epistemological insecurity inherent to our profession and actually getting down to discussing and reflecting on our practice, sharing experiences and …
Read MoreLet the user finish the design
At EPIC, I took part in a very interesting workshop discussion led by Jeanette Blomberg and Elin Rønby, two of the leading figures within the field of ethnography-supported design. The theme of the workshop was making visible the object of design in the design process, …
Read MoreDunbar’s number and Facebook
Recently, I made a brief reference to the so-called Dunbar number in relation to my list of friends on Facebook. Since then, I’ve spent some time reading up on Dunbar’s number and the concept of friends on social networking sites, and feel the need to …
Read MoreEpiphanies commoditized
The final session at the EPIC conference was a return to the original question that led to the creation of the EPIC conferences in the first place: How do we make people (stakeholders, decision makers, change agents and others) understand the value of ethnography in …
Read MoreAll design is redesign
A recent Bruno Latour keynote[PDF] has been making the rounds on the Anthrodesign mailing list. Called “A Cautious Prometheus?”, it is a very concise and thoughtful dissection of the changes the word and concept ‘design’ has been undergoing for the past 30-40 years, which also …
Read MoreDoing (ethnographic) interviews
I found this video on ethnographic interviewing techniques and “getting people to talk” on the American Anthrodesign mailing list: Getting People to Talk: An Ethnography & Interviewing Primer from Gabe & Kristy on Vimeo. The film is made by a couple of design students at …
Read MoreAnthropology of business
Last Wednesday, I went to a discussion seminar on Business Anthropology arranged by the Danish Association of Anthropologists. With Business Anthropology, the organizers actually meant the anthropology of business – as in the ethnographic study of corporate culture and leadership, which became clear as the …
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