4.2 Developing Key Design Principles
With the help of some Sacrificial Concepts
In this section, I propose set of design principles to foster a successful “familiarisation”, to build relationships between immigrants and locals, in order to reach that desired end state. The design principles were necessary as part of the research aim to deliver the principles useful for future designers to create concepts to achieve social integration.
The 1st version of design principles was created midway through the interviews. This 1st version would be tested and iterated through interviews in this research cycle (RC), and action research in the next RC.
Key Design Principles (Version 1)
1. Involve everyone, ensure no standing out — not an immigrant / local only thing.
Many talked about their fear of standing out e.g. Participant 1’s experience of being ‘stuck out like a sore thumb in Texas’, and the importance of letting relationships grow organically (Participant 2, and Expert 4). Expert 7 also mentioned about being overt about promoting social integration, and getting people to coalesce around a common goal (Expert 9). Therefore it is deduced that a key design principle was to involve everyone — without immigrants or locals being singled out openly, to attend social activities.
2. Impart coping mechanisms to build trust and resolve conflicts
Participant 4 mentioned about how difficult it was in a university setting, whereby the culture in the architecture course, though a diverse mix of people, was so disruptive as a foreigner that she had to take a break for a year to return to her homeland to destress. As pointed out in the literature review, the misconceptions which locals had of immigrants e.g. in being the root cause of long queues for public services such as NHS could also result in conflicts and misunderstandings between peoples. Therefore besides just putting people together and expect them to cope or overcome differences, key design principle 2 highlights a need to be coping mechanisms to facilitate and guide interactions between immigrants and locals. ,
3. Make integration a designed-for, not serendipitous, outcome
The case of New York City showed that a highly diverse environment did not mean that social integration would take place. Immigrants could end up isolated, or integrate along ethnic lines instead. Therefore in addition to letting relationships develop organically, key design principle 3 therefore espoused the need for being conscious about designing for social integration as an outcome in the activities conducted by non-profit organisations, instead of simply leaving things to chance.
Based on the above design principles (version 1), the following early-stage prototypes were then made and shown to users for feedback, to test ideas early and furthur refine the key design principles.
(i) Music Pop-up Tent
Drawing inspiration from Picture Impact, an arts group promoting cross-cultural understanding, this prototype was made in the form as a storyboard to find out: Could music be an effective medium to overcome language barriers? How receptive would people be to using music to overcome language barriers in interethnic communications?
The concept works like this: a pop-up tent where people could explore different cultures’ musical instruments, make their own music, and share their creations with friends with a message of peace on social media.
FEEDBACK
Expert 6: ‘Percussion instruments might be easier for people to pick up than other instruments e.g. stringed or wind instruments.’
Expert 3: ‘Seemed to be more about attention-seeking.’
(ii) Museum of Discrimination
A virtual museum, inspired by Museum of Tolerance, and quotes about forgetting history. Building empathy for the discriminated through understanding atrocities (e.g. anti-Semitism) committed in the past.
FEEDBACK
Participant 22: ‘Useful for targeting discrimination that occurs far away, but not so much towards immigration problem, as immigrants were coming to our land. The issues that mattered to me were more about jobs.’
(iii) Perceptions
Dispelling myths about immigrants stealing jobs from locals or causing security threats, by connecting locals with career coaches who were immigrants and meeting up with immigrant families.
Helping locals befriend immigrants through common interests (e.g. sports, technology) facilitated by big-name local groups e.g. Manchester City Football Club, CodeUp MCR.
FEEDBACK
Participant 20: ‘Only had issues with ‘illegal’ immigrants, so it was simplistic to ascertain the general extent of welcome for immigrants.’
Participant 21: ‘Good idea to reach out to immigrant communities through interest groups, but I prefer connecting with people face-to-face, instead of through an app.’
Refining Key Design Principles (Version 2)
1. Involve everyone, ensure no standing out — not an immigrant / local only thing
→ Make it easy for people to participate
Based on feedback from the music pop-up tent, people wanted to be able to join in a group activity easily. It was important to lower the barriers of entry e.g. music instruments like percussion which were easier for newbies to participate. This would make it easier for everyone to be involved.
2. Impart coping mechanisms to build trust and resolve conflicts
→ Build genuine relationships
Some felt that the music pop-up tent was more of a stunt or gimmick rather than a platform that would help social integration. I inferred that people wanted channels which helped them to build genuine connections with others.
3. Make integration a designed-for, not serendipitous, outcome
→ Discuss relevant issues holistically
Feedback from the Museum of Discrimination concept showed that people wanted something more relevant to their needs. The prototype “Perceptions” revealed their disdain of simplistic solutions to complex solutions, and their need for a holistic solution.
