BRIDGING THE GAP: DESIGNER’S “USER CONCEPT” AS A TRANSFORMATIVE TOOL BETWEEN USER KNOWLEDGE AND DESIGN

Currently, growing public demand for an inclusive architectural environment points to a challenging task: effective integration of user knowledge to design. Addressing this issue, the purpose of thepresent study is to review the problem between user knowledge and design and to propose and examine designer’s “user concept” as a potential answer towards bridging the gap between user knowledgeand design. For this aim, “the definition of user knowledge,” itself, and the nature of the prevalent design model are viewed and addressed as the two main sources of the problem. Designer’s “user concept” is proposed as a transformative tool and its significant role both in identifying the need for user knowledge in design process, and in the integration of this knowledge to design is clarified.