Speaker
Description
The TWAF (Designing THE, WITH, AGAINST, sound FOR) framework, originating from sound-driven design, offers a structured yet flexible lens for addressing sound-related challenges in complex socio-technological environments (Delle Monache, 2022; 2024). Rather than treating sound as an isolated artifact, the framework reframes design as a multi-perspective exploration of listening experiences, integrating sonic, experiential, technical, and cultural dimensions. This makes it particularly relevant as an educational tool in early-stage ideation processes, where problem framing can benefit from multiple-perspective input. As an educational tool, TWAF supports designers in systematically expanding the design space. It encourages divergent thinking by prompting students to reinterpret a single problem through multiple lenses, while also fostering convergence by linking each perspective to specific problem and solution spaces (creative, integrative, mitigative, purposeful). In the context of Intensive Care Units (ICUs), as explored in van der Stelt’s listener-centric MSc thesis (TU Delft Repository), sound-related challenges emerge from the interplay between multiple users, technologies, and functional demands within a shared acoustic biotope (Özcan et al, 2022, 20226). Traditional approaches—focused on noise reduction or single sound sources—fail to capture this complexity. The sound-driven design framework addresses this gap by splitting ideation into four complementary perspectives: generating new sonic expressions (THE), integrating sound within broader listener experiences (WITH), mitigating acoustic harm (AGAINST), and aligning sound with cultural and contextual meaning (FOR). Accordingly, by providing a shared vocabulary across disciplines, TWAF facilitated collaboration and supported the development of holistic, listener-centric design strategies that are fitting with the broader requirements of ICUs. As such, the framework promises to enhance students’ capacity to navigate socio-technological complexity with human factors considered.