Creativity in the Design Process: Cognitive Actions and Conceptual Transformations

Abstract

This research explores the complex relationship between creativity and cognitive processes during the design process, focusing on the mechanisms that stimulate conceptual expansion and shifts in understanding how creative insights emerge. The study involved 25 participants who employed the think-aloud protocol to tackle a specific design task. Linkographic entropies derived from verbal data collected during design sessions were employed to identify critical moves (CM) and their corresponding design decisions. The CM networks were analysed and coded using the Function-Behaviour-Structure (FBS) ontology to classify design actions. Furthermore, semantic analysis was conducted to categorise the types of design transformations as either conceptual expansions or conceptual shifts. The findings reveal that conceptual shifts are achieved solely through Synthesis, while conceptual expansions serve as the foundational elements for these shifts. Cognitive actions-specifically reformulations and evaluations-were found to facilitate conceptual expansions and contribute to conceptual shifts at various levels. The effectiveness and type of these conceptual transformations are influenced by the distance between the knowledge sets used during cognitive actions. Formulation and Analysis do not contribute to fostering conceptual transformations. The study contributes to a deeper understanding of the cognitive processes underlying design creativity, providing insights for both design education and professional practice.