10 Years of C–K Theory: A Survey on the Academic and Industrial Impacts of a Design Theory

Abstract

The goal of our research was to understand what is expected today from a design theory and what types of impact such type of scientific proposition may reach. To answer these questions with a grounded approach, we chose to study the development of C–K theory as phenomenon per se that can inform our research work. C–K theory is clearly recognised as a design theory and it is a good representative of the level of generality and abstraction of contemporary design theory, and the validity of the theory as such has already been documented (e.g. [32, 33, 35, 36, 47, 56, 68], Reich et al. 2010). The current work sets out to understand the dissemination and the impact of the theory in academic and industrial fields. The data collection overlooks the literature on C–K theory in English and in French, and includes interviews and feedbacks of students and industrial partners who applied C–K methodologies and tools. This research confirms the rapid diffusion and multiple impacts of C–K theory. Beyond, such study signals that there are important expectations towards a design theory within the field of knowledge at large. However there are strong conditions to meet these expectations: generality, generativity and relatedness to contemporary sciences. If it is impossible to say what will be the next generations of design theory, it is sure that they should progress on these directions.