Temporal design

Designers are increasingly paying attention to problematic experiences of time. From a critique of acceleration to an urge to frame present actions within more extended futures, designers have been analysing how different temporal perceptions may influence practices and how they can be influenced by design. In this paper, we argue that in order to challenge problematic relationships to time, designers should consider time in radically different terms. Instead of regarding time largely in terms of pace and direction, they should start considering the complexity of aspects that sustain the coordination of particular groups. We present this approach through the concept of Temporal Design, which endeavours to reveal actors, practices and forces that determine social coordination within specific contexts. By surfacing this complexity, temporal design would allow it to be discussed, possibly demystifying problematic experiences and enabling more inclusive ways of understanding time.