Where to start with a Design Dissertation
The module most creative people dread…Including me!
You know what, one of the things that I absolutely hate is formal writing - can you tell?! I know I’m not naturally good at it and to be honest I hate reading, don’t enjoy researching topics endlessly and how do you state a reference?!
Some of you may feel the same way… It took me a while and a great tutor to really understand how to approach my dissertation and by the end of it, thinking of the actual subject was the most difficult part!
Lets kick off with a bit of background of how we did our ‘design dissertation’. Essentially we had to pick a topic/question/statement which we could research, write 5000 words and make into a website.
I’ll be straight with you… here is mine: MANIPULATIVE ARCHITECTURE
(to my own surprise I got a 1st for my design dissertation! so hopefully will help you a little before you even start?! Fingers-crossed…)
The Subject/Theme/Question/Statement
My inspiration came from a trip to Las Vegas earlier that year - initially it was the realisation that casinos are designed in a certain way to keep customers there… should have been obvious right?!
Well, this little (but obvious) thought lead me to my general dissertation theme that would then run throughout my final major project too - Manipulative Architecture. Essentially this was looking into how different architecture is designed to make the user act or do particular things. For my dissertation I looked at retail stores whereas my design project moved into a slightly different sector.
From this you can tell that the concept was already known therefore there was existing research that I could draw upon.
Remember, your topic will need to be discussed with your tutor. They will have an idea of how feasible or realistic it will be to write an entire essay on the subject and if it will be strong enough overall.
What you’re trying to achieve
Remember at undergrad stage you are not coming up with a complete new theory or idea that you’re proving or disproving. This is the chance for you to explore a topic that you find interesting within the architecture world…
Essentially we already can see the proven conclusion, you are collating information with your own case studies and an added educated personal conclusion.
Research
Once you know your topic (or even have an idea) do some initial research. Start online and see if there are any books/news articles/webpages talking about it. You can bring this to your tutor where you can talk about things you’ve read that interest you or maybe conflict with a theory.
I found the key with research is:
Take lots of relevant information from multiple sources!
Books, newspapers, magazines, journals, online etc.
Reference every single one-correctly!
Your university should give you guidance on this. However take a look at my dissertation and my bibliography and figure sources to get a basic idea of how it works. Remember to do this from the start - you don’t want to be in a position where you want to quote something but can’t remember where it came from! I made sure everything and any statement I thought could be relevant was jotted down on a page with the reference ready and link (if online).
The Theories
This is a large bulk of your essay. This should show the majority of you research within this section as you are telling the reader about theories that have already been made by people throughout the past.
Splitting these theories into workable sections will make it much easier to write about as well as easier to test yourself and make conclusions.
You will see within my work I reference a lot of relevant sources within this section as well as feature some experiments they have done to try and prove their theories. Yet at the same time I then connect it back to something I know today which means I slightly insinuate the understanding of their theory and original experiment - as seen when I connect a past experiment on proportions with the images I took within my university building here.
See examples of theories sections from my dissertation here.
Use Case Studies
Where possible case studies that you have carried out yourself! Sometimes this may not be possible however this really proves that you understand what you’ve been researching.
What you could include in a case study segment:
Introduction to the overall segment and what experiment/observation entails.
Section for each case study showing:
Photographs
Maps
Diagrams
Background about site
Explanation
Small conclusion on each case study
See examples of my case studies here.
Conclusion (+ Introduction)
Now you’re probably thinking that I have mucked up here by putting these two together but I promise it was completely intensional. They come hand in hand!
I assure you it is best to leave the introduction until last. How can you write an introduction before you know what the essay is going to be about?! Also you want to look like you we’re leaning towards the right outcome from the beginning if you can…
My introduction starts with a general explanation of the title/theme with a couple of diagrams and theorists to back it up. Then breaks down the main Aims, Objectives and Scopes. Again these are kept quite generalised (a diluted version of my actual findings) and states why some information may be restricted due to ethics, personal views or the sheer size of the overall subject. This just allows us to reiterate that there are other factors that could effect the outcome but we are focusing in on a specific element to study.
Remember all of these points connect back to the conclusion - in fact they have been pulled from the conclusion and diluted/insinuated to be a question/statement that needed proving.
My conclusion then picks up on these points made in the introduction (or as we know visa versa). Here the conclusion talks briefly through each of the sections we have stated pulling out key elements such as bold statements in theories or key irregularities in case studies. This allows you as the writer to show some fact based opinion.
Where you have previously made statements and small conclusions on separate theories and case studies this is now your opportunity to compare them. You should take this time to comment on the clear wins and losses within your research/case studies.
Finally you don’t have to definitively answer your title question/statement. You can allude to your fact based opinion conclusion but you do not need to write ‘yes architecture is manipulative’ for example. It is all about using research to create connections between theory and the real world.
So that’s it - my (no so little) starter pack on design dissertations! This subject seriously threw me during final year but you’ll be happy to know I made it through the other side and got a 1st for Manipulative Architecture (research project/design dissertation)!
Hopefully with this little insight you’ll be able to get cracking, talk everything through with your dissertation tutor and bang out a great essay (even if you still hate formal writing by the end of it!)
Let me know in the comments or email if you have any specific questions and what stage you’re at with your dissertation…