Building Bridges: Empirical Philosophy (of Technology) and Research through Design

Philosophy is marked by an absence of a (scientific) method, which leads to the challenge of how to integrate Philosophy into interdisciplinary research project. Research through Design (RtD) creates an opening for philosophical investigations, which are more than the application of philosophical insights to a given case. Rather, by taking design research seriously as a way of knowing the world, Designer and Philosophers can make use of their joint interest in “matters of choice, with things that could be other than they are” (Buchanan, 1995). Thus, Philosophers have an opportunity to gain empirical insights which fit their interests, while Designers can benefit from the alternative conceptional frameworks offered in Philosophy. In this respect, the suggested approach goes beyond other forms of Applied and Application-oriented Philosophy (including Value-Sensitive Design), which often remain at the level of Research for Design.