Lost in imagined space: A psychoanalysis of participatory design

Participatory design (PD) is a signature element of good design practice. However, enabling effective participation is often difficult to realise. This article highlights the value of applying psychoanalytic approaches to spatial thinking to better understand the deeper complexities and dynamics of the space-psyche relationship, and the challenges in the spatial thinking process that can inadvertently alienate participants in PD. Lacanian psychoanalysis is used to highlight how participants' lack of access to imagined space compromises their ability to establish a reciprocal relationship with space. The paper contributes to critiques of PD by exploring the relationship between spatial thinking, power, and agency in the PD process through Lacanian psychoanalysis. The paper argues the space that imagination seeks to access should not be gated or guarded by the designer's gaze, and that careful work is required to prevent such foreclosures from occurring.