‌Project Partners

Prof Kristina Niedderer, University of Wolverhampton, UK

(Principal Investigator)

‌Kristina Niedderer is Professor in Design and Applied Arts in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Wolverhampton where she leads the ‘Material and Theoretical Practice’ research cluster. She was originally apprenticed, and worked as a goldsmith and silversmith in Germany. She then trained as a designer and design researcher in the United Kingdom, with an M.A. (RCA) and a Ph.D. in Design. Niedderer’s research focuses on the impact ofdesign on human relationships. Working with new and smart technologies, she investigates the role of mindfulness and emotions as a means to engender mindful social interaction and behaviour change through design. Niedderer is a Council Member and Secretary for Special Interest Groups of the Design Research Society and founding editor of the journal Craft Research. 

Dr Rebecca Cain, Warwick University, UK 

‌Rebecca Cain is Associate Professor in Experience-Led Innovation based in the International Institute of Product and Service Innovation in WMG. Cain has a First Class degree in Industrial Design & Technology and a PhD in user involvement in the design process from Loughborough University. In 2009 she was awarded a prestigious EPSRC Challenging Engineering fellowship to build research capability in the design of healthcare environments through user-centred design. Cain's innovative multi-disciplinary research programme 'Participation in Healthcare Environment Engineering' brings together design and engineering, architecture, psychology, healthcare and ICT, including close partnerships with the NHS, patients, architects, designers and engineers. Cain also was the Principal Investigator on the TSB/EPSRC funded project EMPOWER for user experience-led research into behaviour change for energy efficiency. She has researched perceptions of sound in peoples' experiences of environments, and she has worked for Jaguar & LandRover researching the relationship of driver behaviour and the human machine interface.

Dr Jamie Mackrill, Warwick University, UK

‌Mackrill has a BSc (Hons) degree in Ergonomics (Human Factors) from Loughborough University and a PhD in Engineering from WMG, University of Warwick. His primary research interests concern how people experience their surroundings, particularly within the healthcare setting, and how understanding this can be used to improve experience through engineering solutions. This curiosity grew out of Jamie's background in understanding the human aspects to work, environments, and interactions through his PhD and beyond. Current work has expanded beyond healthcare to look at usability and experience of energy interfaces, such as heating control systems. Jamie has published in a variety of fields ranging from nursing to psychology and ergonomics.

Prof Andrew Morris, Loughborough University, UK

‌Andrew Morris is Professor of Human Factors in Transport Safety, and Director of Internationalisation for the Loughborough Design School. Morris re-joined Loughborough University after working at the Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC), Australia between 1997 and 2001. Morris has 25 years’ experience in the field of road transportation safety, vehicle safety, accident investigation, crash-injury and driver behaviour research having worked previously on the UK’s Co-operative Crash Injury (CCIS) and On-the-Spot (OTS) studies. He worked as project leader within large European consortiums on behalf of the European Commission on major road safety initiatives including the SafetyNet, PENDANT and DaCoTA projects. Most recently, he has been involved in the EC’s TeleFOT project involving Field Operational Tests (FOTs) of aftermarket and nomadic devices in vehicles. He has published over 150 refereed technical publications, reports and conference papers in the subject of accident research, road crash injury, accident causation and driver behaviour. Morris was awarded the US Government Special Award of Appreciation in recognition of ‘outstanding leadership and special contributions in the field of motor vehicle safety’ in June 2009. 

Dr Stephen Clune, Lancaster University, UK

Stephen Clune is a sustainable designer, researcher and educator with over a decade of experience in sustainable design. He has joined ImaginationLancaster at Lancaster University as a senior lecturer in sustainable design. Clune previously worked at the Centre for Design, RMIT University, where he worked on applied sustainability research projects across a broad range of scales. This included investigating the role of packaging in preventing food waste, and facilitating workshops on climate adaptive landscape solutions in regional Australia. Clune’s core research interest focuses on how design and design thinking can assist in the move towards a sustainable society, with a particular interest in design as a facilitator of change. His work draws on a diverse range of tools from social practice theory, behavioural change and Life Cycle Analysis.

Dr Dan Lockton, Royal College of Art, London, UK

Dan Lockton is a Senior Associate at the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, Royal College of Art. He specialises in links between design, behaviour, and the public understanding of everyday systems, particularly around social and environmental impacts of technology. Lockton is working on SusLab, a European project on domestic energy use, and Creative Citizens, a UK project on co-designing technology with community groups, and regularly does industrial consultancy. He was previously a research fellow at WMG, University of Warwick, and a research assistant at Brunel University, working with startup CarbonCulture on reducing CO2 emissions at the Department of Energy & Climate Change. Lockton has a Masters in Technology Policy from the University of Cambridge and a PhD on ‘Design with Intent’ from Brunel, which developed a multidisciplinary toolkit for the emerging field of ‘design for behaviour change’.

Dr Geke Ludden, University of Twente, NL

Geke Ludden (PhD) is an Assistant Professor at the University of Twente, Department of Industrial Design Engineering. Ludden was trained as a designer and as a researcher and is now a specialist on design for behaviour change in both health and mobility. Her work focuses on developing both products and product-service systems that help people change their lifestyle in order to improve their (physical as well as mental) health. As a project leader in several design for behaviour change projects, she has experience in developing such services in collaboration with industrial parties. Ludden is a member of the board of The Design & Emotion Society and connects with this international network of designers and researchers. She has published in several journals including Design Issues, The International Journal of Design, and Empirical Studies of the Arts. 

Project Advisors 

Prof Martyn Evans, Lancaster University , UK

‌Dr. Martyn Evans is a trained product designer. His research interests explore the strategic approaches designers use to consider the future. He is a Director of Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts and a founding member of the design-led research lab ImaginationLancaster at Lancaster University. He has undertaken a number of funded research projects including Design 2020 which explores potential futures for the UK design industry, DeEP: Design in European Policies which develops an understanding of the impact of design and innovation policies, D-Craft which develops effective design strategies to support the revitalisation of culturally related products, and the European Design Innovation Platform which aims to increase the use of design for innovation and growth across Europe. With extensive experience of leading design curricula, he is an external examiner and academic advisor in the UK and internationally.

Edward Gardiner, Warwick University, UK

‌Edward Gardiner leads a partnership with the Design Council called the Behavioural Design Lab, applying insights and methods from behavioural science to the design of new products, services and places that change behaviour and improve everyday life. Before joining Warwick Business School, Gardiner worked for the advertising agency, Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe / Y&R, managing integrated campaigns for private and public sector campaigns. He holds an MA in Natural Sciences (Psychology) from the University of Cambridge and an MSc in Cognitive and Decision Sciences from UCL. Gardiner is based at the Design Council and works with organisations from all sectors to help them understand the role of behaviour in the challenges they face. He is also part of the Create programme at WBS, exploring new teaching and research opportunities on the role of design and creativity in business.

Dr Robin Gutteridge, University of Wolverhampton, UK

Dr Robin Gutteridge, PhD, is a Consultant in Health and Wellbeing at the University of Wolverhampton, where she works in a Cross School collaborative role. Originally a physiotherapist, Robin is a Chartered Psychologist and an experienced teacher, researcher and mentor. Her work as a Consultant in Health and Wellbeing involves building effective partnerships between the University and Health and Social Care sectors, including service users and carers and the Voluntary Community and Faith Sector. Gutteridge has an MA in Gerontology, and a PhD in Applied Social Studies. In her spare time, Robin practices as a counsellor and psychosexual therapist for individuals and couples. Her research interests encompass a range of topics related to health and wellbeing and learning and teaching.

Prof Paul Hekkert, TU Delft, NL

Paul Hekkert is Full Professor of Form Theory, and Head of the Industrial Design Department, Delft University of Technology. Paul conducts research on the ways products impact human experience and behavior, and leads the international project UMA (Unified Model of Aesthetics). Paul has published articles dealing with product experience and aesthetics in major international journals and is co-editor of Product experience (2008). He also published Vision in Design: A guidebook for innovators (2011), a book that describes an approach to design and innovation. Paul is co-founder and chairman of the Design and Emotion society and chairman of the executive board of CRISP, a national collaborative research initiative for and with the Dutch creative industries.