Observer, expert, or activist: changing roles in design research project

Abstract

This article discusses ethical issues in an urban development design research study. It is based on an ongoing PhD research project which investigates<br/>questions of urban housing design in socially diverse, multicultural neighbourhoods. Experience from the case discloses ethical responsibilities in design research that concerns researchers’ positions, empirical results, and perceivable effects on the case environment. This article aims to argue for politically informed action that acknowledges ethical responsibilities to the case environment and people living in it as a primary interest in design research.