Design Theory Books
Communication Design: Principles, Methods, and Practice
By Jorge Frascara
Frascara, J. (2004). Communication Design: Principles, Methods, and Practice. New York, NY: Allworth Press.
"Visual communication design, seen as an activity, is the action of conceiving, programming, projecting, and realising visual communications that are usually produced through industrial means and are aimed at broadcasting specific messages to specific sectors of the public. This is done with a view toward having an impact on the public's knowledge, attitudes, or behaviour in an intended direction." (Page 2)
"Creativity in design has nothing to do with self-expression and an indulgent egocentrism. It requires, instead, an objective and flexible intelligence, an ability to analyse any problem from a multiplicity of viewpoints, so as to be able to understand the intentions of a client (the originator of the message), and the possible perceptions that a wide range of sectors of the public could have of a given message." (Page 11)
"Every piece of communication design arises from the need to communicate a specific message, and to obtain a desired response; in other words, it comes to exist because someone wants to say something to someone else, so that this someone else does something in particular." (Page 12)
"Design for persuasion and design for education are both directed at affecting the behaviour of the public. Design for persuasion can be divided into three areas: advertising (commercial and non-commercial); propaganda (political and ideological); and social interest communications (health, hygiene, safety, etc)." (Page 138)
"Persuasive communications in commercial advertising involve a delicate cultural balance. The general public, to a great extent, adopts value systems based on what the media promote and portray, and this can sometimes involve controversial issues." (Page 142)
"Non-commercial advertising includes the promotion of socially orientated public events, ideas, services, or facilities. Generally, this advertising is financed by governments or nonprofit organisations with a view toward contributing to the well-being of people." (Page 144)
"Persuasive communications intend to affect the behaviour of the public. Although educational materials have the same intention, the purpose is different. It is different because in education one always intends to persuade individuals to think on their own, to judge, and to make decisions on the basis of personal reflection. In sum, the intent of the persuasive message is normally to convince, while the educational message intends to contribute to personal development." (Page 152)
"Design applied to public health and safety is based on the three areas discussed above. Although its objective is of such importance that one is tempted to assign to it a special status, it works in methodological terms through the three types of design already discussed: information, persuasion, and education." (Page 157)
"Communication design is a useful tool when applied with intelligence toward the reduction of social problems of many kinds." (Page 188)
By Susan B Barnes
Barnes, S. B. (2009). Visual Impact: The Power Of Visual Persuasion. Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press.
"What is visual impact? Impact means the power of an event or idea to move feelings and produce behaviours. Visual impact, as conceptualised in this book, is the use of imagery to stir feelings and influence human actions. Visual influence can occur on conscious and unconscious levels of awareness, which is a key reason for the choice of the word impact over persuasion."
"Persuasion is a form of impact that attempts to influence others with an intentional message."
"In today's visually orientated culture, people are constantly coming into contact with visual messages designed to influence their opinions on a wide range of topics."
"What is visual impact? Impact means the power of an event or idea to move feelings and produce behaviours. Visual impact, as conceptualised in this book, is the use of imagery to stir feelings and influence human actions. Visual influence can occur on conscious and unconscious levels of awareness, which is a key reason for the choice of the word impact over persuasion."
"Persuasion is a form of impact that attempts to influence others with an intentional message."
"In today's visually orientated culture, people are constantly coming into contact with visual messages designed to influence their opinions on a wide range of topics."