ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at positioning design research PhDs in the context of the larger landscape of science and research. The successful integration of all five moments in a design research PhD or funded research project is able to fulfil all common research criteria. The five moments are: original moments, reflective moments, projective moments, transfer moments and empty moments. The origin of each PhD and research should be a question which no one has answered satisfactorily so far. The originality of a PhD depends on the quality of the research question. Reflective moments usually take up the most time within a PhD and are absolutely essential for evaluating whether the research work truly addresses a new, original question. In the process of a PhD, these projective moments of designing have unique potential for concretising unknown futures. They create new ways for things to relate, based on certain assumptions and premises.
