On the future of weddings and funerals -
Thesis log #0
That's what my thesis project will be about for my Masters thesis in Service Design program at Linköping University during this spring 2025 term.
Hear me out, In Service Design we think in terms of actors, values and resources. We map them, explore the relationships between them and eventually design a future scenario where the actors are creating and receiving value while exchanging or utlizing resources. That is a rough description of a service in our parlance. My contention for the thesis project is that 'meaning' as in 'what gives meaning to one's life' is a very interesting 'value' that some services can be designed for and building frameworks and design tools for designers to handle such a design material as 'meaning' should be a very fruitful and fun exercise for 5-6 months or so I think at least for now when I am kicking off the project.
The idea of designing weddings and funerals came about when I was at the Humanisternas Kongress 2024 (The Humanists conference 2024) and learnt that the humanists association in Sweden has recently obtained the legal right to officiate weddings.
So here is a group of people, with a certain set of values and beliefs that I share offering a service where the creation of meaning for all the actors involved is the whole point of the service. It seemed perfect and when I pitched the idea to some of the attendants, they seemed intrigued!
The following points made me finalize this as a thesis topic
- The fact that it has the potential to have some real world outcomes
- Advice from my professors to pursue something meaningful(pun intended) instead of a company provided thesis topic
- That I get to read and learn fascinating things about death and life and how have people historically built rituals and ceremonies to some of life's biggest questions
- And, that I get the opportunity to design ceremonies and 'tradition'; an opportunity that is usually only afforded to fantasy and science fiction authors, priests and cult leaders! Lol, who doesn't want to be a cult leader every now and then.
So, HERE WE GO!
The academic framing of the topic is as such -
Title - Designing with and for meaning
Preliminary Research question - How do you design for the discovery and facilitation of meaning in services?
Design methodology
The design methodology describes the intended design process and as far as I know workshops, interviews and probes are like bread and butter for service designers. So, I have thought of a few workshop ideas that I am very excited about.
For funerals
A design probe where the primary activity is to reflect on ones mortality and think about concepts of living beyond their death through memories of them in others, through their impact and ideas, etc. The way of triggering this mortality thought will be through a product that I had always wanted to design. A mortality desk clock, a clock that shows you how long you have lived so far and therefore reminds you of the finiteness of life. A conceptual goal for the product is also that it somehow catalogs different milestones in your life. Similar to how parents mark the growing height of their children and end up with a snapshot of their kids' childhood in essence. Imagine, if you could have something like that for your life, what would you catalog, quantify and reminisce about?
Second, a mock funeral where we celebrate the life of a well known person and reflect on how we deal with loss, grief and what are our thoughts about the person living on through memories or ideas or what have you.
For weddings
Interview couples and extract what the wedding ceremony symbolized, what could have been better, what went well etc.
And also have a co-creation workshop with couples who are about to be wed and brainstorm meaningful ceremonies and rituals.
Research through Design
After the new services are designed, I will formulate design tools and frameworks which will be the primary knowledge contribution of the thesis, which is the whole purpose of an academic thesis. This method of extracting research from the act of doing design is called Research through Design and it is an established research community.
Theoretical framework
Under the theoretical framework, I will be relying on literature from anthropology, philosphy and psychology to investigate the following pertinent questions.
- What is the connection between value systems and one's beliefs about a meaningful life?
- How do these value systems express themselves?
- What is the utility of value systems in general?
- What characterizes the value systems of humanism?
- What is the cultural history of funerals and weddings?
- How do humans deal with grief, mortality and personal identity through time?
- How have sci-fi authors envisioned ceremonies for alien species?
Some of the theories and works I have stumbled upon so far -
- Terror Management Theory (Greenberg et al., 1986) – This theory suggests that humans manage the fear of death by reinforcing cultural worldviews and self-esteem, which provide a sense of meaning and immortality. (Wikipedia)
- The Scrooge Effect – When reminded of their mortality, people become more generous and prosocial, likely as a way to affirm their cultural values and reduce existential anxiety. (Wikipedia)
- Mortality Salience (Greenberg et al., 1994) – The awareness of one's own death influences attitudes and behaviors, often leading to stronger in-group identification and defensive reactions to worldview threats. (Wikipedia)
- History of Funeral Rituals Across Religions (Smith, 2017) – Funeral practices vary widely but often serve to honor the deceased, provide closure, and reinforce cultural beliefs about the afterlife.
Let me know if you have any thoughts or ideas!
Email: sidar934 at student.liu.se
