The Roles of Technical Communication Researchers in Design Scholarship

Abstract

Design has come to be understood as an essential aspect of the work that technical communicators claim. As a result, research in the field of technical communication has approached studies of design in numerous ways. This article showcases how technical communication researchers assume the roles of observers, testers, critics, creators, and consultants in their handling of design artifacts. Such a model regarding these roles may help us to better understand the design relationships researchers presume as they further knowledge of design within our field. This article offers a framework to leverage into a comprehensive and integrated model for explaining our work on design to others outside of technical communication. Keywords research in technical communication, design research, design, disciplinarityWithin the last few decades, visual design has become a commonplace skill that technical communicators have explicitly been expected to understand and implement in their work. As a result, technical communication researchers have devoted much attention to the study of design and its elements. In fact, in her review of the literature from over 10 years ago, Portewig (2004) noted that the technical communication scholarship on design at the time argued, in part, that we should pay attention to visuals and visualization in order to respond to their ascendance and to teach our students how to expand their role from authors to

Examining Multimodal Community-Engaged Projects for Technical and Professional Communication: Motivation, Design, Technology, and Impact

“…For instance, following the calls for enhancing civic engagement and service-learning in public writing and rhetorical contexts (Deans, 2000; Deans et al, 2010; Grabill, 2007), some scholarly efforts have been made to expand the design of multimodal projects as a form of critical practice in TPC instruction (Fleckenstein, 2010; Gries, 2019; Sheridan et al, 2012; Stone, 2018; Warren-Riley & Hurley, 2017). In practice, Sánchez (2017) posited that TPC practitioners must acknowledge design as a fundamental competency––“As design becomes a commonly expected competency for technical communicators, researchers in the field will have to develop multifaceted ways of studying the subject of design” (p. 384). One of such ways is through cultural critiques of design.…”

Day or Night at the Museum: A UX Analysis of Virtual Exhibits

“…However, when virtual exhibits dazzle with a smart UX design and playfully challenge the user, the real fun begins. Sánchez (2016) notes how document design, paper or digital, has become a veritable pillar of Technical Communication. "Design has become an understood facet of Technical Communication, and it continues to be a subject within our field that gains importance and complexity-a complexity that can generate multiple terms stemming from our own and borrowed from other fields."…”

8. Creating the �Through-Line� by Engaging Industry Certification Standards in SLO Redesign for a Core Curriculum Technical Writing Course

“…At the core of technical and professional communication (TPC) pedagogy, design literacy contributes to foundational knowledge of TPC best practices, including best practices regarding document design (Sánchez, 2017;Williams, 2015), user-centered design (Redish & Barnum, 2011;Salvo, 2001), and accessible design (Melonçon, 2014;Walters, 2010)-what Kelli Cargile terms "layered literacies,"-multifaceted skill sets that address increasingly complex industries and competencies. Frequently, our students go on to produce deliverables for specific audiences and design communication for a myriad of workplace or community contexts, yet as our field's social justice turn continues to reshape our pedagogy, research, and engagement , our understanding of design for what and for whom is continually evolving, responding to and designing for users in an increasingly globalized workplace and community.…”

“…I argue we should include "design" with that discussion and query students about their prior knowledge of it, experiences with it, and questions for its application. We must challenge students to explore the public work of design as connected to technical communication and urge students to think about the material impact of design (Holsinger, 2012;Purdy, 2014;Sánchez, 2017). Integrate interdisciplinary design processes into our pedagogies: Turn to industry design sources, case studies, and knowledge articles to complement our academic texts and TPC scholarship.…”