Abstract

The aim of this paper is to describe technological design as an interactive activity that takes place within specific professional communities. We refer to «workplace studies» (Luff, Hindmarsh and Heath 2000; Engeström and Middleton 1996; Zucchermaglio and Alby 2006), which analyze work as interactive, mediated and multimodal practice. Within this framework, the interactions among technical designers from two different data corpora of work meetings were analyzed. Results show that technological design activity is accomplished through a continuous negotiation among participants, with different competences, interests and visions. This situated and collaborative activity of negotiation is essential to develop a joint enterprise and a shared repertoire among designers, regarding also not strictly technical aspects of design practices. Argumentative sequences and accounts are, on the contrary, less present. This result suggests that, moreover in the first phases of the development of a group, it will be more important for designers to develop a collaborative stance than an opposing one.