Research Fields
The research projects at the IDR investigate forms of designed communication in the following five research fields: „Knowledge Visualization”, „Social Design”, „Environmental Communication Design”, „Design and Rhetoric” and „Design History” as well as the project field „Entrepreneurship and Creative Economies”.
Knowledge Visualization
The projects in the „Knowledge Visualization” research field deal with the visualization and communication of data and information as well as the design of interfaces. The focus is on the visualization of qualitative data: Patient processes, exhibitions or interviews are visualized in new ways – with the aim of learning something new about the data corpus and the phenomena hidden in it. Partners from the business sector and public administration use the collaboration with the HKB to learn more about their topics, their context and the concerns of their clients. In the further education programme CAS Data Visualization, the results are continuously incorporated into research-based teaching.
Research field co-ordinator „Knowledge Visualization”:
Social Design
The term „Social Design” is used to describe a wide array of practices and research methods that explore the complex relationship between design and society.
Researchers at the IDR aim to critically study the broad field of „Social Design” and map its new trajectories, as the discipline evolves to include new areas and practices. The team works on various social issues as well as emerging challenges and always strives for interdisciplinary work with different partners. The research field uses participatory design methods, creative techniques and ethnographic research to design inclusive and collaborative approaches that promote social justice and bring about positive change in society.
The BFH research group „Health Care Communication Design” HCCD is part of the research field „Social Design”.
Research field co-ordinator „Social Design”:
Environmental Communication Design
„Environmental Communication Design” explores the interplay between communication design and (especially architectural) space. The focus is on questions relating to the discipline of signage, i.e. orientation and information systems, as well as the effect of colours in space, the interplay of space with displays and devices and the design of architectural processes. The research field is closely linked to the Master of Advanced Studies in Signaletics – Environmental Communication Design at the HKB.
Research field co-ordinator „Environmental Communication Design”:
Design and Rhetoric
Rhetoric, which is thousands of years old, holds great potential in terms of concepts for describing and implementing effective communication. The research field „Design and Rhetoric” uses these rhetorical models to explore the practice of communication design.
The projects in this research field explore the very different effects of design from a rhetorical perspective: Not only the blatant advertising poster, but also the restrained signage of public transport and government agency forms are analysed under the aspect of impact-oriented communication.
Research field co-ordinator „Design and Rhetoric”:
Design History
Design history examines the context of origin, production, communication, consumption and impact of design as well as the resulting discourses. As such, it not only shapes design practice, but also links design and society, thus contributing to our understanding of human culture.
The research field „Design History” analyses design as a cultural phenomenon. Previous focal points have included Swiss graphic design, interactions between visual culture and national identity, visual forms of historiography, visual communication and subculture as well as the impact of design history on design practice. To this end, theories and methods of document, book, exhibition and discourse analysis are applied to textual, visual and relational materials.
Research field co-ordinator „Design History”:
Project Field „Entrepreneurship and Creative Economies” ECE
The project field of „Entrepreneurship and Creative Economies” unlocks the transformative power of creativity, entrepreneurship and design. It explores the path to innovation and sustainable development in a dynamic, interconnected world for a fairer planet. The researchers implement projects that shape the future of entrepreneurship and the creative industries. They seek to understand how visionary individuals, artistic expression and sustainable business practices can reshape economies and drive positive social and environmental change. The project field is closely linked to the Master in Design at the HKB.
Project field co-ordinator „Entrepreneurship and Creative Economies”:
BFH Research Group „Health Care Communication Design” HCCD (2007–2025)
Since 2007, the interdisciplinary Health Care Communication Design (HCCD) research group at Bern University of Applied Sciences (BFH) has carried out numerous research and development projects at the interface of design, communication, architecture, design and health. With the founding mandate for the Swiss Centre for Design and Health (SCDH) in December 2017, the HCCD research group took on a central role in the development of the SCDH and ensured the technical and operational connection to the BFH as a founding shareholder. The scientific work of the HCCD research group has now been fully integrated into the SCDH. With the integration of the research group into the SCDH, the HCCD's expertise has been preserved and will be continued in Switzerland's only technology competence centre for design research in the health sector.
The HCCD research group brought together researchers from five departments at BFH – Bern University of the Arts HKB, Health, Architecture, Economics and Medical Informatics – and worked on over 50 projects with partners from all over Switzerland on an interprofessional basis.
Three key areas were addressed: (1) safety for patients and staff, (2) orientation and communication, and (3) long-term care.
Projects and studies were carried out with Curaviva Switzerland, the Insel Gruppe Bern, the Felix Platter Hospital in Basel, the Triemli City Hospital in Zurich, Domicil Bern, the Institute for Social Anthropology at the University of Bern and College M Bern, among others. As part of its service contracts, the research group also prepared expert reports on the communicative setting in hospitals, conducted inspections of model rooms and advised institutions on communication and architectural tenders.
