How do we integrate these values in our solution?

Integrate values in
your design

What is the result of this step?

This step will result in a list of value-based requirements for the design of the technology. It is the first step of the technical investigation phase of Value Sensitive Design.

Why?

It needs to be investigated whether and to what extent the values identified and prioritized in the previous steps can become part of the design of the technology. To do this you will analyze the specific characteristics of the technology and use the values to specify the requirements for the design.

How do you do this?

By making a value hierarchy (see box 8 for an example). A value hierarchy helps to make the translation from values into concrete design requirements. The figure below illustrates this. The top layer of this figure shows the values that you identified, such as for example ‘respect for autonomy’ which demands to foster someone’s capacity to make choices freely, based on relevant information. The middle layer translates this value into norms. These norms could be prescriptions (commands) to do actions but also restrictions (prohibitions), such as: ‘choose the option that supports/enhances the autonomy of users’ or ‘refrain from manipulating/steering the decisions of users in a direction’.Based on these norms, you can formulate design requirements by further specifying what compliance with the norms would mean for the design of the technology. For a technological system that aims to foster autonomy, you could identify design requirements such as: (a) always reveal the different options for action available, (b) provide information about the rivalling options for action, (c) foster decision making by showing the pros and cons of different options. The relationship between the three layers is not deductive, but it involves translating one layer into the next.

Fig. 1. Values hierarchy (Source: Van de Poel, 2013).

Box 8: Info

How to make a value hierarchy 

Show me

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