Reviewing design methods to make them more sensitive to gender

2. Scope

This report has been produced in response to the recommendation from the NACWG, and is geared at inclusive design practices looking at meaningfully engaging and involving women and girls in the overall design process, as highlighted by SAtSD. This report summarises best practice in terms of design methods.

Design methods are procedures, techniques, aids, or tools for designing products or services. They offer a number of different kinds of activities that a designer might use within an overall design process. Choosing the right design methods allows user-centred design professionals to engage with the right audience, and uncover useful insights that underpin the overall development and delivery of a service.

User-centred design methods such as running research and data collection exercises, help capture users' perspectives that will directly shape the outcome of a design project. By making sure our design methods are inclusive and sensitive to gender-based issues, we can significantly increase the ability of women and girls to meaningfully participate in our design work, improving the quality of our public services. This seemingly small intervention can have a lasting and transformative effect on how public services are designed in Scotland by incorporating a gender perspective into service design and delivery.

It is important to highlight that pulling together existing best practice is only the first step in designing services that are sensitive to gender. More needs to be done, particularly in terms of gender mainstreaming. Though focusing on best practice to involve women and girls in user-centred design methods, this review also considers other intersectional elements such as disability, ethnicity, poverty, and migration wherever possible.

A parallel stream of work commissioned by the Office of the Chief Designer is reviewing and testing inclusive design methods to meaningfully involve disabled people in design activities. Relevant findings will be brought together in the SAtSD guidance.