Carousel of feelings: Reversal theory as a design tool

This paper describes a design research project that aimed to find the best ways to convey reversal theory in a holistic way to designers, so that its principles could be applied in creating more effective and compelling products. Over a number of iterations, two games were developed that together can be used as a tool in design processes. This tool incorporated the key insights of the theory and presented these in a format that was suitable for the creative mindset of designers and the challenges they face in the design process. Besides their primary aim, the games also proved useful in understanding the emotions and motivations of user target groups and in communicating the theory to third parties.