Looking inside the box to think outside it : contextualizing design thinking

In this chapter, we conceptualize design thinking by examining two dominant discourses, which we call descriptive and prescriptive perspectives. The descriptive perspective aims to understand the way designers think and work but has been criticized for its absence of a clear definition of design thinking. On the other hand, the prescriptive perspective considers design thinking as a method to innovate and create value. The prescriptive design thinking perspective has been criticized for presenting a simplistic vision of design, which people without any previous training, knowledge, and skills in relevant disciplines may use out of context. This chapter attempts to provide a look "inside the box" by re-conceptualizing design thinking, not as a "doer method" but a cognitive process with a long research tradition. We argue for a synthesis of both perspectives in teaching and learning practices. In doing so, we present a pedagogical approach grounded in game-based learning to mediate an integrative perspective to design thinking, using an example from a higher education business class.