Projektowanie uwzględniające mieszkańca/użytkownika. O (po)pandemicznej szansie na projektowanie mieszkań lepiej dostosowanych do wykonywania w nich pracy
Designing with the resident/user in mind: The (post)pandemic opportunity for designing homes better suited for work-from-home environments

Summary/Abstract: The pandemic served as a field test for the (dys)functionality of inhabited spaces. The sudden lockdowns of 2020 required rapid adaptation to a reality where work and home life merged more completely than at any time since the Industrial Revolution. This experience heightened residents' awareness of needs, thereby revealing two processes that we analyse as opportunities for improved design. On the one hand, the pandemic fostered enforced reflexivity, which is essential for design that addresses actual needs. On the other hand, it prompted a form of networked (digital) exhibitionism centred around domestic spaces. The study aims to analyse the implications of enforced reflexivity and networked exhibitionism for domestic spaces, particularly regarding working from home and the interaction between designers and users during the residential design process. The analysis focused on selected Polish studies of housing experiences during the pandemic in 2020. As the findings are intended to illustrate the two identified processes, they do not provide an exhaustive or comprehensive account. The study highlights that the pandemic played a key role in popularizing the processes of enforced reflexivity and networked exhibitionism. These processes offer designers a valuable opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of users' needs and daily practices, which can contribute to the creation of more functional and user-oriented residential designs. However, the findings indicate that this remains only a potential opportunity for improving design, rather than a definitive catalyst for profound changes in design practices.

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