Another heavily cited text on the subject of design research is Laurel\u2019s handbook of research methodologies to guide designers in their process. Unlike Blessing and Chakrabarti\u2019s book, the series of essays edited by Laurel is firmly grounded in practice and celebrates heterogeneity within the design field rather than trying to rein it in. Even the presentation of the text itself \u2013 purposefully designed, and visually appealing as such \u2013 is an endorsement of Laurel\u2019s approach. Design Research: Methods and Perspectives<\/em> embodies the aesthetic spirit of design in contrast to a strict emphasis on usability that could be attributed to Blessing and Chakrabarti\u2019s book. Of the two, Laurel\u2019s text will likely play a far more significant role in defining the \u2018how\u2019 of the design process for the project.[1]<\/a><\/p>\n Design Research<\/em> is divided into four parts: people, form, process and action. For the current stage of the project, the focus will be on the \u201cprocess\u201d section of the book to help define a design research methodology, although one chapter within \u201caction\u201d \u2013 \u201cSocial Impact by Design\u201d \u2013 also maps out a promising approach. A few essays also specifically take up virtual reality, though it is worth bearing in mind that the book predates the affordable consumer technologies of our own moment by more than a decade. The remainder of the book \u2013 discussing qualitative methods (\u201cpeople\u201d), case studies (\u201caction\u201d) and the nature of artifact creation (\u201cform) \u2013 could support later stages of the project.<\/p>\n