Design thinking: expanding the frame of reference - a study of concepts, ideas and thinking tools developed by Edward de Bono that have potential for application within a design process and design thinking framework

This research project focuses on design's ability to bring imaginable worlds out of non-existence into existence and investigates thinking behaviors referred to as design thinking. Underpinning the research is a biological model for the way the brain functions developed by Edward de Bono and the research question asks: can design thinking be enriched with some of de Bono's ideas in order to make the thinking and the process more effective and can some of these ideas be diagrammatically represented? An outcome of the project is the development of a graphic visualisation of a four-stage design process and design thinking schema.