Abstract
This paper presents a preliminary review of recent Design PhDs that identify and analyse the methodological innovation that is occurring in the field, in order to inform future provision of research training for Design PhDs. Six recently completed Design PhDs are used to highlight possible philosophical and practical models that can be adopted by future PhD design students. Four characteristics were found in Design PhD methodology; thesis-structural innovation, a ‘pick and mix’ research design approach, situating practice in the enquiry and the validation of visual analysis. The paper concludes by offering suggestions on how research training can be improved for Design PhD candidates. By being aware of recent methodological innovations in the field, design educators will be better informed when developing resources for future design doctoral candidates, and assisting supervision teams in developing a more informed and flexible approach to practice-led research.
Keywords
Methodological innovation; Design research methods; PhD research training; Approaches to design research
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/eksig2009.112
Citation
Yee, J.S.(2009) Capturing tacit knowledge: documenting and understanding recent methodological innovation used in Design Doctorates in order to inform Postgraduate training provision, in Niedderer, K., Reilly, L., Roworth-Stokes, S., Smith, C. (eds.), EKSIG 2009: Experiential Knowledge, Method & Methodology, 19 June 2009, London, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/eksig2009.112
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Capturing tacit knowledge: documenting and understanding recent methodological innovation used in Design Doctorates in order to inform Postgraduate training provision
This paper presents a preliminary review of recent Design PhDs that identify and analyse the methodological innovation that is occurring in the field, in order to inform future provision of research training for Design PhDs. Six recently completed Design PhDs are used to highlight possible philosophical and practical models that can be adopted by future PhD design students. Four characteristics were found in Design PhD methodology; thesis-structural innovation, a ‘pick and mix’ research design approach, situating practice in the enquiry and the validation of visual analysis. The paper concludes by offering suggestions on how research training can be improved for Design PhD candidates. By being aware of recent methodological innovations in the field, design educators will be better informed when developing resources for future design doctoral candidates, and assisting supervision teams in developing a more informed and flexible approach to practice-led research.