ABSTRACT
The nature of problems in general, and design problems in particular, has challenged philosophers, computer scientists, and designers alike. Simon’s de nition of design as a problem-solving behavior aimed “at changing existing situations into preferred ones” is a common starting point (Simon 1969; Jackman et al. 2007). Everyone does it. It is a cognitive behavior. The goal is an improvement. Some “existing situations” are problems; but are all problems design problems? If I need my hat o the shelf in the closet and I simply stand up and reach for it, I may be changing an existing situation to a preferred one, but have I done design? The solution to the problem is immediately apparent-obvious. It simply needs to be executed. Only if I am unable to reach the hat do I need to think about it. Even then, having encountered this di culty before, I may know I can stand on a chair and reach, or use a stick to work the hat o the shelf. I may know of several alternative solutions requiring a step or two to execute (fetching the chair or nding a stick), but the solution is routine. Only someone contemplating this problem for the rst time actually needs to devise a new, or creative, response. In each case the existing situation is the same, as is the preferred one, indicating that response to problems depends on personal experience and that the response will not always be unique or novel.
