Design by analogy
An ideation method that looks for similar problems in other fields, like nature or other sectors, and transfers the structure of their solution to your own problem.
What it’s for
It helps break fixation: getting stuck on the first ideas or on known solutions.
Key elements
Abstract
Describe the problem without the sector’s terms.
Search far
Different fields with the same underlying problem.
Transfer the structure
What you copy is the relationship, not the appearance.
How it’s done
Describe the function: what needs to be achieved?
Search for who else solves that.
Transfer and adapt the idea.
Applications in design
When to use it
When the team keeps coming back to the same old ideas.
Avoid
Copying the form of a solution from another field without understanding why it works.
Don’t fall for it
An analogy is a starting point: check that the idea fits your context.
Connections
Authors and works
- 1983
Dedre Gentner
Explained that an analogy transfers relationships from one case to another, not surface features.
- 2016
Diana P. Moreno et al.
Compared two methods with 97 professionals: both produced more novel ideas, and one helped break fixation.
Sources
Original sources
- Gentner, D. (1983). Structure-mapping: A theoretical framework for analogy. Cognitive Science, 7(2), 155–170. View source: Gentner, D. (1983)
- Moreno, D. P., Blessing, L. T., Yang, M. C., Hernández, A. A., & Wood, K. L. (2016). Overcoming design fixation: Design by analogy studies and nonintuitive findings. AI EDAM, 30(2), 185–199. View source: Moreno, D. P., Blessing, L. T., Yang, M. C., Hernández, A. A., & Wood, K. L. (2016)
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