EMMA Glossary of Terms

The product is consistent. It is the degree of internal integration of the end product, to what extent main line and elaboration of all aspects form a consistent whole. It is a quality, concept or essence, in the sense of the sum being more than all its aspects.

Relevance, well-argued, meaning. It has quality and value in relation to a wider context. It is deepening a focus, a design vision or research question in relation to the professional, scientific, ‘design’, historical, philosophical, ethical and / or socio-cultural context.

Development, fleshing out, extensiveness. It addresses a relevant number of aspects and the degree to which they are resolved. It is the extent to which both aspects and main line are worked out, also in relation to each other. 

Accuracy, efficacy, and evidence-based. The information, facts and deployed design / research techniques and tools are adequate. They are based on or emerging from accepted (professional) knowledge and know-how, and they make sense in relation to each other. Innovative methods and new knowledge developed or applied in the project must be grounded and substantiated either empirically or theoretically.

Imaginativeness. Transcending the design task through creativity, original contribution, personal interpretation. Holding the attention or interest through enrichment or/and excellence. Design and research products vary in this respect from coming up with a ‘craftsman’s piece of work’ in a specific, unique, complex, vague and open-ended situation to an innovative aspect or artefact, in the sense of surprising and unfamiliar combinations and unexpected ideas. 

All kind of professional well-established knowledge and experience, in the form of theory, principles, patterns and tools. It is effective precedent study, interpretation and processing to come up with a qualitative good product in a specific unique situation at hand. In the end the product itself enriches the professional culture of knowledge and know-how. 

Studying, generating alternatives, testing, trial-and-error, trial-and-reflection. It includes the whole palette of overseeing from different perspectives, thinking out of the box, investigating knowledge and new developments, learning about an issue at hand by experimenting.