Malloy 10 Literature Review
Contrary to popular belief, participatory approaches to design are not new, having ties in Northern Europe and beginnings as early as the 1970s.13 However, they remain widely unpracticed, why? Passionate trailblazers have been successful in co-creation, but even they have faced criticism and barriers. Co-creation is not easy; it is messy, takes time, is ambiguous, and can often cost money, especially in research. These legitimate concerns are understandable and must be addressed case-by-case, however, it is not these concerns that serve as the primary barriers to embrace co-creation and participatory design in visual communication. Confusion and ambiguity are progress’s main hindrances; the term co-creation is often used synonymously with co-design, cooperative design, participatory design, and even crowd sourcing. Additionally, people use co-creation in varying ways, from research to products themselves. Opposing mindsets are grounded in a different worldview, one of the designer as expert and the user as passive consumer. This worldview limits the depth of communication, only half recognizing the creativity of the user. Looking forward to a clearer definition of True CoCreation, we can recognize both the designer and user as experts.
Who values Co-Creation? Co-creation is promoted today by researchers, such as psychological and anthropological researcher Elizabeth Sanders, business and marketing gurus, such as C.K. Prahalad and Venkatram Ramaswamy, and educators such as Eric Jensen. Each applies co-creation to achieve a different end, but the essence of relationships between the designer/business/educator and 13
Elizabeth B., Sanders, and Stappers Pieter Jan. "Co-Creation and the New Landscape of Design." Co-design
4, no. 1 (2008): 10.