I’ve decided that I’m going to tweak my question and go down a different route. Instead of focusing on whether designers can save the world by changing people’s behaviour, I’m going to focus on whether a graphic designer’s power to manipulate people’s actions is a good thing.
“Is a graphic designer’s ability to manipulate people’s actions online a good thing?”
“Is a designer’s ability to influence people’s actions online a good thing?”
I will be using the following sources as starting points:
- Neuro Web Design, What makes them click?
- Dr. Susan M. Weinshenk
- Clout, The art and science of influential web content.
- Colleen Jones
- 10 Evil Types of Dark UX Patterns. How designers are using UX for evil.
Adam's Design Research Blog 