Da-Sein Thinking: A Phenomenological Epistemology for Design Thinking

Design Thinking, constructed on the epistemological traditions of rationalism, pragmatism, post-modernism and hermeneutics, has become a field of much interest recently. Despite diverse streams of publications, a consensus on what Design Thinking is and where it is going, has not been established. The paper suggests another epistemological foundation and pathway for Design Thinking on the basis of phenomenology. This notion contributes to extending Simon’s foundational pathway of observing design as the science of artificial in terms of the third way of inquiry and explain what Design Thinking is and towards which direction it is heading. The authors coin the term Da-Sein Thinking as a new path to enhancing design as the field of inquiry by putting the creation of meaning and experience at the center of discourse for designers.