From Belief to Design: Design Considerations and Prototype Development of Contemporary Amulets
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Abstract
This study has two aims—to synthesize design considerations for contemporary amulets from expert perspectives, and to develop and evaluate prototypes that draw on those considerations. Using qualitative inquiry alongside practice-based research, the researchers gathered data from twelve experts through focus groups and in-depth interviews, and analyzed the materials with content and thematic analysis. The results suggest that contemporary amulet design is better understood through flexible, context-dependent considerations than through any fixed framework. Five dimensions emerged: meaning rooted in the user, material as a tool of interpretation, form simplification, narrative as value, and the user as core driver. To validate these considerations, three prototypes were developed and reviewed by three experts. The reviewers agreed that the works convey both traditional meaning and contemporary relevance well, and that they hold practical potential for real use. The study not only offers a body of knowledge for design considerations linking belief, material, and user together but also shows how belief becomes design through practice rather than through theoretical framing alone.
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