Review of Keywords in Design Thinking: A Lexical Primer for Technical Communicators & Designers

Abstract

Keywords in Design Thinking: A Lexical Primer for Technical Communicators & Designers, edited by Jason C. K. Tham, contains a glossary of critical design thinking terminology, each selection connecting the theory and practice of this concept and demonstrating its usefulness to technical and professional communicators in academia and industry. Since its formalization in the early 2000s via Stanford University’s d.school, design thinking as a problem-solving framework continues to grow in popularity across many contexts, including business, healthcare, and education. While valued for its adaptability and human-centered methodology, the concept is also regularly critiqued as being obscure and difficult for professionals to define. By providing design thinking keywords and their developed meanings, each centered in technical and professional communication (TPC), Tham’s selected terms alleviate this known ambiguity, and maintain practical application to the technical communication classroom or workplace.