Seeking Synergies within Metadesign
Subordinate m21 research questions we will use to formulate metadesign principles and to derive outcomes
See also primary research questions + metadesign research questions + benchmarking research questions
- What design-sensitive conditions produce environmentally and socially auspicious and beneficial outcomes?
- Which of these consist of simple factors that may be combined without difficulty? (i.e. additive factors)
- Which of these consist of moderately complex factors that may be combine to give an attractive illusion of synergy? (i.e. auspicious factors)
- Which of these consist of complex factors that may be combined to produce unstable, but synergistic outcomes? (i.e. synergistic factors)
- How can we identify synergies when they occur?
- Can we train designers and other ancillary professionals to recognize synergies?
- How can we usefully cope with the elusive and transitory nature of design-related synergies?
- How can we reduce synergies with unwanted effects and encourage others?
- Is it necessary to 'chunk' synergies into artificial categories in order to make them manageable?
- Are our existing orders of synergy optimal?
- If not, is it necessary to spend more time improving them?
- Do 'keystone synergies' exist? (i.e. synergies that attract or facilitate other clusters of synergy)
- Could metadesigners identify and cultivate 'keystone synergies'?
- Is it possible to design for synergies to occur more often? (maybe the eco-principle can help in achieving this?)
- (How) can metadesigners sustain synergies? (Or are they fugitive, by definition?)