The Process Gain and Loss of Design Workshop: from Offline to Online

"Design Thinking" has not only been prominent in the field of design, but its human-centric innovative strategy has increasingly gained attention and citation across various disciplines. However, the prevailing method for training in design thinking has primarily been through workshops. In these workshops, participants form groups, utilize design thinking tools to discuss specific issues, and generate innovative solutions. In recent years, due to the widespread use of online tools and the impact of the pandemic, workshops are no longer confined to face-to-face discussions and the use of physical tools (whiteboards, pens, sticky notes). In response to the diverse development of workshop formats, this research aimed to thoroughly investigate the factors that stimulated or inhibited team innovation solutions in various forms, whether physical or online. Previous studies had found that the format of brainstorming could influence psychological perceptions and behaviors throughout the process, subsequently affecting team innovation and output. The tangible benefits of team output could be evaluated using the concepts of process gain and process loss. This study explored three common forms of group discussions: (1) face-to-face discussions with the use of physical tools (physical-physical), (2) face-to-face discussions with the use of online tools (physicalvirtual), and (3) online video discussions with the use of online tools (virtual-virtual). It aimed to capture in detail the process gains and process losses events that occurred during brainstorming in each form and analyzed the triggering factors for process gains and losses. The research steps were as follows: * Inventoried process gains and losses events in brainstorming under the three forms. * Conducted interviews to capture the triggering factors for process gains and losses under the three forms. * Analyzed the relationship between process gains and losses and the satisfaction levels of the process and outcomes. The outcomes of this research, compiled from relevant literature and in-depth interview data, included a total of 54 process gains (PG) and loss events (PL). Through one-way analysis of variance, 31 of them reached a significant level among groups. This further helped understand key factors in three dimensions: social enhancement, emotional resonance and atmosphere creation, and diverse communication channels. Additionally, the study provided recommendations for key process gain and loss factors to enhance satisfaction.