Human-centered and participatory methods help researchers understand stakeholder perspectives, frame consequential questions, co-create possibilities and translate evidence into responsible action.
research.
Rigorous research becomes more relevant when the people and communities affected help shape the inquiry.
Design in Research connects disciplinary expertise with human-centered design, participatory co-creation and ethical reflection. Researchers, students and community partners work together to define questions, generate insight, test possibilities and consider consequences.
Start with lived experience.
Address the right problem.
See interdependence.
Iterate with evidence.
Shared learning.
Students move back and forth between inquiry and action. Every test can reveal a better question; every decision is considered in relation to people, planet, consequences, and the common good.
Co-frame
Co-design the research question with people who understand its lived context.
Learn in context
Combine disciplinary evidence with observation, dialogue and experience.
Make sense
Synthesize patterns, tensions, systems and opportunities collaboratively.
Co-create & test
Make possibilities tangible and invite evidence before committing.
Return & act
Share findings, assess consequences and shape responsible next steps.
distributed.
People affected by research bring knowledge that cannot be replaced by observation from a distance.
Treat communities as partners in the work, not audiences for a finished answer.
Use workshops and shared activities where participants contribute their knowledge and perspectives.
Treat communities as partners in the work, not audiences for a finished answer.
Responsibility is part of the method.
Design in Research connects disciplinary expertise with human-centered design, participatory co-creation and ethical reflection. Researchers, students and community partners work together to define questions, generate insight, test possibilities and consider consequences.
Ensure voluntary participation and genuine understanding.
Protect identities and sensitive information.
Address representation and power imbalances.
Identify and mitigate risk throughout the work.
Align with IRB guidance and applicable regulations.
Build the work together.
Design in Research supports multiple ways to participate—from integrating design into an existing study to joining a project or developing an equitable community partnership.
