Suchergebnisse

1. Products and quality: what is the situation?: -- Future trends: population growth and 'taste' -- An example of quality improvement -- Beyond manufacturing quality -- Global competition -- onward. Includes bibliographical references and index. -- 2. Problems in increasing product quality: narrow-mindedness and attitudes: -- Thinking, problem solving, and quality -- Tradition runs deep -- Flaws in economic theory -- The changing nature of design -- Increasing creativity and innovation -- 3. Performance, cost, and price: is it a good deal?: -- Quantifying performance -- The complexity of cost and price -- The balancing act between performance and cost -- Why are there problems? -- 4. Human fit: does the product fit people?: -- Physical fit -- Sensory fit -- Cognitive fit -- Complexity -- Safety and health -- 5. Craftsmanship: joy to the maker, joy to the user: -- Why do we care about craftsmanship? -- The pleasure and pride of craft -- The industry and culture problem -- The nature of craftsmanship -- Some suggestions -- 6. Products, Emotions, and Needs: Love, Hate, or Blah?: -- How Emotions Play a Role -- The Complexity of Human Emotions -- Diversity in Emotional Responses -- The Mechanisms of Emotion -- Human Needs -- Needs and Emotions -- Need Finding -- 7. Aesthetics, Elegance, and Sophistication: Wisdom Through Experience: -- Aesthetics and Industrial Products -- A Bit of Background on Industrial Design -- Elegance and Sophistication -- Product Form and Function -- Some Concerns on Today's Aesthetics -- 8. Symbolism and Cultural Values: Who Are We?: -- Products, Symbolism, and Cultures -- Products and National Cultures -- Products and Subcultures -- Globalism and Cultures -- 9. Global Constraints: Does the Product Fit a Finite Earth and its Inhabitants?: -- Big Problems -- The Role of Industrially Produced Products -- Why These Problems? -- Response to Change -- Revolutionary Approaches -- The Iceberg -- Regulations and Laws -- Now what? -- 10. Conclusion: What Have We Learned? Where Do We Go? -- Discussion of all the elements that go into producing superior products. Maximize your product's performance and minimize the cost - appeal to your customer's emotions with elegance and sophistications - make sure your product is a perfect fit that's human, cultural, and global. -- Suitable for managers, designers, manufacturers, engineers, and marketers, this title looks at the elusive qualities that can make or break a product's success. It helps you to maximize your product's performance - and minimize the cost; appeal to your customer's emotions - with elegance and sophistication; and, more.

(zu Ausg. 2004:) Dieses Buch erschien im US-Original erstmals 1974. Der Autor, Psychologe in Stanford, befasst sich darin mit den Einflüssen, welche die Prozesse der Ideenfindung, der Problemlösung und der Kreativität in Alltag und Berufsleben beeinträchtigen. Adams identifiziert zunächst weiträumig 4 Gruppen von Denkblockaden: solche der Wahrnehmung (z.B. Stereotypen), emotionale (z.B. Angst, Fehler zu machen), kulturelle und umgebungsbedingte (z.B. Tabus; selbstherrliche Vorgesetzte), schließlich intellektuelle Blockaden (z.B. Verwendung einer für die Lösung des Problems ungeeigneten Sprache). Darauf aufbauend, stellt er bewährte psychologische Techniken vor, mit deren Hilfe die o.g. Schlüsselblockaden überwunden oder umgangen werden können und demonstriert deren Relevanz an Beispielen aus Kleingruppen oder Teams in Unternehmen. Wenn auch mit vielen Beispielen und Übungen versehen, kein direkt umsetzbarer Ratgeber, sondern eher ein populärwissenschaftlicher Forschungsbericht. - Im Kontext der Arbeiten von D. Golemann (1999), H. Gardner (2002) oder M. Csikszentmihalyi (1997). (3)