Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Can DBR methodology help business application development?


Design-based Research (DBR) is a new process model for research-type projects. Comparing to the traditional predictive research model, the new model focus on the design of solution to a given problem instead of on developing a theory. A recent Edx course introduces an example using DBR methodology in a game development (Edx:11.127x.U4: Design and Development of Games for Learning). When look at following easy identifiable DBR attributes you will feel that they are also fundamental for business application development:

  • Engage people, both designers and practitioners, from beginning to end, in analysis, development, evaluation, and reflection all stages.
  • Collaboration through “contextually sensitive design principals”.
  • Iterative - learning and improving through iterations. An iteration improves the solution with the knowledge found from the previous iteration(s) while also generates new knowledge for the following iteration(s). In other words, iterative development process is a learning process.
  • Real-world testing - Since DBR is not about improving a theory but about the solution to a problem, the testing environment is real-world rather than tightly and artificially controlled as that in the empirical model.
  • Contextual - situation specific, not applicable in general.
  • Exploratory - Through interactive design, from prototypes including physical prototyping, paper prototyping, digital prototyping, finally to the production. Exploratory testing & iterations. 
The traditional empirical predictive research model goes through: (a) hypotheses -> experiments -> theory refinements -> (a) -> application (of theory), whereas the new DBR model goes through: (a) analysis -> (b) solution development -> (c) iterative solution testing and refinement ->(d) reflection (to produce design and enhance solution) ->(a,b,c). Based Reeve, the methodology change is fundamental. Here is a quote of him:

The overall goal of research within the empirical tradition is to develop long-lasting theories and unambiguous principles that can be handed off to practitioners for implementation. Development research, on the other hand, requires a pragmatic epistemology that regards learning theory as being collaboratively shaped by researchers and practitioners. The overall goal of development research is to solve real problems while at the same time constructing Design-principles that can inform future decisions. In Kuhn's terms, these are different worlds." (Reeves, 2000: 12). 
(http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Design-based_research)

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