Students use convergent thinking strategies to synthesise and make sense of research data. They review, categorise and summarise new information in order to clarify or reframe the problem at hand. Using these insights, students develop a brief in which they identify a client and their communication need/s, and detail the purpose, context, audience or users as well as a list of constraints. These design criteria are used to evaluate the success of design ideas.
During the Define stage, students would explore ways to visually present their research data so that information can be categorised and analysed, and design problems can be better understood. This might include the presentation of user personas and key research insights, together with written reflections about stakeholders and the design problem at hand. This information informs the development of a brief, which as a formal document, would be typed and presented at this stage of the design process.