Graduation opportunity: Designing for (sustainable) behavioural change by using the theory on consum
Changing people’s consumption behaviour in order to reduce the negative effect on the environment and create a circular economy is difficult. Consumers are often not inclined to maintain and repair their products, to share products, or to lower their energy consumption, but these behaviours are essential for the success of a circular economy. To tackle this challenge, designers should aim to change people’s behaviour via the design of products and services. This graduation project aims to provide designers with design guidelines on how to design for (sustainable) behaviour change. Through a research-based set up, the recently developed theory of Consumer Wisdom (Luchs and Mick, 2018) will be used to develop these guidelines.
Consumer Wisdom (CW) is defined as the pursuit of well-being for oneself and for others through mindful management of consumption-related choices and behaviours. The theory of Consumer Wisdom is therefore central to sustainable behavioural change.
Assignment: With this assignment, you will focus on sustainable behavioural changes and take the CW theory one step further by:
Creating a list of design practices for sustainable behavioural change for each facet of the consumer wisdom theory
Conducting workshops with designers to validate how the practices align with the facets and to amend the list of practices
Letting designers evaluate sustainable products using the CW framework and consumers rate how much they promote well-being, and their willingness to buy the products.
With this assignment, you will contribute to the existing theory on sustainable behavioural change and will create a list of guidelines for designers that help them create wiser products and services that promote sustainable behavioural change.
We are looking for a student with an interest in sustainability and consumer behaviour. The student should have a strong affinity for doing research and conducting workshops with designers.
Enthusiasm, strong analytical capabilities and an eye for detail will be beneficial. This assignment is most suitable for an SPD or a DFI student.
How to connect with us
The graduate student can start as soon as possible and will be part of the Circular Design Lab of IDE. The student will also work in close connection with Prof. Michael Luchs who is internationally recognised for his research on sustainable consumption. If you are interested, please send an email to Prof. Ruth Mugge (TU Delft) and Lise Magnier and a motivation for the assignment.
Contacts:
Ruth Mugge r.mugge@tudelft.nl - Professor at TU Delft, IDE
Lise Magnier l.b.m.magnier@tudelft.nl - Assistant Professor at TU Delft, IDE
Michael Luchs michael.luchs@mason.wm.edu - Associate Professor of Business, College of William & Mary, Williamsburg.
