Figure 4: The effect of worldview and culture on industrial design based on the survival/ self-expression values from the Inglehart-Welzel Cultural Map of the World and symbology of products - unexampled/icon.
Conclusion The effect of worldview on product design can be diagramed on two axes: (1) survival values/ selfexpression per Inglehart-Welzel worldview survey and (2) unexampled (new products and concepts) culturally integrated products (icons). (Figure 4) The location of the product concept can help the designer to determine what important assumptions are regarding design factors based on worldview and culture. The result is high-level understanding of how a product relates to worldview and culture. Each worldview and culture will have different product placements as the values and behaviors are different for each group of people and the integration and meaning of a product into the culture changes with each.
regard for the influence of worldview and culture. Industrial design will evolve as there is increased understanding of the users’ worldviews and cultures. Bibliography Albrecht, Donald. Design Culture Now. New York: Princeton Architectural Press (2000). Balaram, S. “Product Symbolism of Gandhi and Its Connection with Indian Mythology” Design Issues Vol. 5 No.2 Spring, 1998. 68 – 85. JStor Online. 30 August 2007. <http://www.jstor.org/sici?sici =07479360(198921)5%3A2%3C68%3APSOGAI%3E2.0.CO%3B2> Barnard, Malcolm. Art, Design and Visual Culture: An Introduction. New York: St. Martin’s Press (1998).
The graphic can also show zones where certain paradigms are active. If a product falls in the lower lefthand corner, cost and function will be valued above, but not excluding, symbolism and form. This is the area of the graph that addresses the needs of 90% of the world. If, on the other hand, a product falls into the upper right hand quadrant, then symbolism, style and form are primary. This is the area where the product needs to enhance the users’ experience of an activity and tell a story. Additionally, the product may strongly reflect post-materialist values. Industrial design continues to operate within the traditional paradigm which emphasizes technical and profit influences without
Betts, Paul. The Authority of Everyday Objects: A Cultural History of West Germany. Berkley: University of California Press (2004). Boym, Constantine “For Culture’s Sake.” School of Visual Arts. 8 April, 2008. <http://design.schoolofvisualarts.edu/souvenir/ onsouvenirs.html> Boztepe, Suzan. “Toward a framework of product development for global markets: a user-value-based approach” Design Studies, 28(5): 513-533. 6 September, 2007. <http://trex.id.iit. edu/~boztepe/Design%20Studies.pdf>
Design and semantics of form and movement
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