Consuming is a natural human behaviour. To stop consuming and designing would be impossible. However, it is a challenge for designers to discover approaches, products and technologies to make “consuming” more “sustainable”. Designers shape the world and sometimes, shape social behaviours as well.
This thesis aims at understanding the user/product relationship and how product design can influence it. The goal is to find the key to designing products that would last for more than a typical product lifespan, while giving the user a rich experience that would last for a lifetime, and sometimes passed down to the next generations as well.
In a world of commodities, Product Design ought to create stories for the user to feel more personally attached to his belongings. Memories and Nostalgia, the only factors the 5 designer cannot completely control are the most important factors that influence product attachment. The final product of this thesis, “the cocoon”, switches roles between the designer and the user, and makes sure the user becomes attached like never before.
In a world of commodities, Product Design ought to create stories for the user to feel more personally attached to his belongings. Memories and Nostalgia, the only factors the 5 designer cannot completely control are the most important factors that influence product attachment. The final product of this thesis, “the cocoon”, switches roles between the designer and the user, and makes sure the user becomes attached like never before.
The thesis book is in itself an experiment about emotionally durable designs. Between it's pages, some activities were left for the user to complete.
When the user puts a part of himself in the book, it is meant to increase the attachment, and thus the user would be less prone to throw the book away.
When the user puts a part of himself in the book, it is meant to increase the attachment, and thus the user would be less prone to throw the book away.
Check out the whole publication and the activities below;
