‘Meta-analysis’, a quantitative technique widely used for the systematic review of randomised control trials in medicine, is deployed as a method to identify studies which investigate computer aided design software as an ‘intervention’ with causality, complexity and creativity as design ‘outcomes’. The paper hypothesises ‘a cause-and-effect’ relationship between ‘tools’ and design ‘outcome’ and infers that, contrary to held beliefs, tools are not passive; there may-be a design phenomenon of tool-linked ‘causality’. To this end Heidegger’s text on the act of ‘revealing’ surrounding the use of technology was deductively used. The study then links the issue of tools to design creativity through a two-stage process. First, creativity domains were culled from seminal works. Second, the impact of computer tools on creative problem-solving and ideation was examined empirically through an original design algorithm developed by the author. In brief, computer-augmented creativity in design is feasible for form finding, complexity optimisation and ideation variety.

Keywords: causality, systematic review, creativity, tools, meta-analysis