HayleyCookeLab6


 * LAB 6: Bodystorming**


 * Part 1:**

According to Anne Fairbrother, bodystorming is a "participatory method for demonstrating or developing ideas in a physical setting". Members of teams are to explore ideas physically, and they frequently use props (e.g. photos or maps). Bodystorming goes beyond brainstorming - this is because instead of simply thinking about something, you are getting a physical idea of what it's like.

Because bodystorming is live, you get an accurate up-to-date idea about whatever is being examined or explored. You can spontaneously come up with new things on the spot because you are so involved in the process.

Bodystorming is also very important for problem solving, and working out issues before a product enters the market. By acting out a situation, it is more likely that you will find yourself also acting out problems that could occur with the product. It is a good way to test something, and to explore possible problems with products/service situations.

For example, in the first Youtube clip (Experiencing a disability), bodystorming gives the participant a quite accurate idea of what the disability at hand is really like. Instead of brainstorming - just talking and thinking about what a disability is like, bodystorming gives a physical and more tangible idea of what it is really like to live with a disability.


 * Part 2:**

I would like to explore the issue of insomnia. This is a sleeping disorder that I've never had to deal with, because I am a very sound sleeper. However, both my mom and sister have had to deal with this for many years

I would perform this bodystorming exercise in my normal room and bed, but I would have extreme external factors in place in order to affect my sleep.

Firstly, I would change the room temperature, so that it was really hot. Most people have trouble sleeping when it is too hot, because they can't get comfortable. If the temperature was extreme enough, I think I would have problems falling asleep and staying asleep.

I would also play a CD with random loud noises. Insomniacs often have very sensitive hearing during the night, and any little sound can wake them up. Quiet sounds don't wake me up in the middle of the night, so these sounds will need to be medium-loud volume so that I can hear them loud enough in order to wake me up.

To analyze these results, I would video-tape myself throughout the night. This way, I would be able to look back at the tape the next day, and analyze the specifics of everything that happened the night before. Also, I could have someone in the room watching me to get a first-hand experience of my reactions in the middle of the night.

This bodystorming experiment would give me first-hand experience of how insomniacs live. Instead of just reading about it, this would give my a closer physical idea of what kind of trauma these people have to go through on a regular basis.