Collingridge's dilemma
Knowledge and control move in opposite directions over the life of a design.
What it is
I sometimes bring in Collingridge’s dilemma. David Collingridge wrote: “When change is easy, the need for it cannot be foreseen. When the need for change is apparent, change has become expensive, difficult, and time-consuming.”
For anyone working with access and use, like me, the parallel is easy to recognise. Accessibility, usability and Universal Design need to be part of the design process from the very start, when the least is known about the end result and the potential for access and use is at its highest. The two curves cross: control over the decisions is highest exactly when knowledge of their effects is lowest.
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References
- Collingridge, D. (1980). The social control of technology. Frances Pinter; St. Martin's Press.
- Genus, A., & Stirling, A. (2018). Collingridge and the dilemma of control: Towards responsible and accountable innovation. Research Policy, 47(1), 61–69. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2017.09.012
- Hedvall, P.-O., Ståhl, A., & Iwarsson, S. (2022). Tillgänglighet, användbarhet och universell utformning. In V. Denvall & S. Iwarsson (Eds.), Participation (pp. 151–181).
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