Perception Over the Use of Traditional and Digital Mediums Within the Design Process: A Questionnaire Study on Design Students.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore design student's perceptions over traditional and digital mediums within the design process. In this research, a convenient sample of design students was selected from two universities between Latin America and North America to respond a questionnaire which inquired for the design steps and the type of tools they used. The importance of traditional medium in the design process has been widely researched (e.g. Goldschmidt, 1991; Suwa, Purcell, & Gero, 1998; Tang & Gero, 2002). In a similar manner, digital medium has evolved in the design practice and researchers have looked at how the use of digital tools affect the design process (Salman, Laing, & Conniff, 2014). Multiple studies have argued that some stages of this process cannot be supported by digital medium tools (e.g. Bilda & Demirkan, 2003; Kwon, Choi, Lee, & Chai, 2005; Meniru, Rivard, & Bédard, 2003; Stones & Cassidy, 2007). In contrast, digital medium stimulates the occurrence of design patterns and epistemic actions (Yu, et al. 2015: Chandrasekera, 2014). Digital medium will require the development of new knowledge which may affect the designer's role and the education practices of new designers. The outcomes of this study will help design educators to understand design students' preferences in using digital tools and develop curriculums accordingly. In addition, it will aid software developers to better understand, cater to design students' needs and take advantage in the growing shift from traditional to digital medium.