ABSTRACT
Recent sport research has acknowledged and explored the usefulness of a human-centered approach to innovation called design thinking for both for- and non-profit sport organizations. This chapter introduces the concept of design thinking as a theory derived from the broader field of management and outlines examples of design thinking being used to achieve social innovation in various fields. While research of design thinking in the sport for development (SFD) context is recent, researcher interest in the concept can be seen to be growing. Such interest follows from promising findings of early and ongoing research. Indeed, alignment with themes of design thinking has been discovered in extant SFD research and practice, suggesting the concept of design thinking might hold promise for SFD organizations seeking to better understand and serve their “users” (including, e.g., participants). This chapter highlights how SFD researchers and practitioners can adopt design thinking into practice toward such ends.
