Comparing Design Thinking Traits between National Samples of Civil Engineering and Architecture Students
Publication: Journal of Civil Engineering Education
Volume 147, Issue 2
Abstract
Civil engineers and architects are both trained in design thinking, but they approach the process of design from differing perspectives largely due to the divergence in their educational curriculums. With an interest in the effect of differing educational perspectives on design thinking outcomes, comparisons were made between the self-identified design thinking abilities of students in their final year of undergraduate civil engineering or architecture programs. Perceived design thinking ability was evaluated through a survey that was distributed to students enrolled in 4-year institutions across the United States. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) test was used to compare responses between the civil engineering () and architecture () student samples. There is a significant difference in perceived design thinking ability between the groups. Architecture students score higher than civil engineering students on all design thinking traits. Based on these results, the civil engineering curriculum may benefit from the incorporation of pedagogy that emphasizes design thinking, like studio-based learning.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
This material is based in part on work supported by the National Science Foundation, through Grant Nos. EEC-1635534 and EEC-1635204. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
References
ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology). 2017. Criteria for accrediting engineering programs. Baltimore: ABET.
Adams, R., S. Daly, L. Mann, and G. Dall’Alba. 2011. “Being a professional: Three lenses into design thinking, acting, and being.” Des. Stud. 32 (6): 588–607. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2011.07.004.
Adams, R., J. Turns, and C. Atman. 2003. “Educating effective engineering designers: The role of reflective practice.” Des. Stud. 24 (3): 275–294. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0142-694X(02)00056-X.
Akin, O. 2001. “Variants in design cognition.” In Design knowing and learning: Cognition in design education, edited by C. Eastman, M. McCracken, and W. Newstetter. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier.
Alexander, C. 1964. Notes on the synthesis of form. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Alexander, C. 1965. “A city is not a tree.” Archit. Forum 122 (1): 58–62.
ASCE. 2019. Civil engineering body of knowledge: Preparing the future civil engineer. Reston, VA: ASCE.
Atman, C., M. Cardella, J. Turns, and R. Adams. 2004. “Comparing freshmen and senior engineering design processes: An in-depth follow up study.” Des. Stud. 26 (4): 325–357. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2004.09.005.
Atman, C., J. Chimka, K. Bursic, and H. Nachtmann. 1999. “A comparison of freshman and senior engineering design processes.” Des. Studios 20 (2): 131–152. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0142-694X(98)00031-3.
Atwood, S. A., and J. E. Pretz. 2016. “Creativity as a factor in persistence and academic achievement of engineering undergraduates.” J. Eng. Educ. 105 (4): 540–559. https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20130.
Bairaktarova, D. 2017. “The new renaissance artificers: Harnessing the power of creativity in engineering classroom.” In Creative ways of knowing in engineering, 1–22. New York: Springer.
Bashier, F. 2014. “Reflections on architectural design education: The return of rationalism in the studio.” Front. Archit. Res. 3 (4): 424–430. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foar.2014.08.004.
Beiler, M. R. O. 2015. “Integrating innovation and entrepreneurship principles into the civil engineering curriculum.” J. Civ. Eng. Educ. 141 (3): 04014014. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EI.1943-5541.0000233.
Bennetts, C., B. Caldwell, A. Cheeley, and M. Green. 2017. “Comparing facets of divergent thinking in engineering freshmen and upperclassmen.” In Proc., ASME 2017 Int. Design Engineering Technical Conf. and Computers and Information in Engineering Conf. Cleveland: ASME.
Blizzard, J., L. Klotz, G. Potvin, Z. Hazari, J. Cribbs, and A. Godwin. 2015. “Using survey questions to identify and learn more about those who exhibit design thinking traits.” Des. Stud. 38 (May): 92–110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2015.02.002.
Brown, T. 2008. “Design thinking.” Harv. Bus. Rev. 86 (6): 84–92.
Bucciarelli, L. 2003. “Designing and learning: A disjunction in contexts.” Des. Stud. 24 (3): 295–311. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0142-694X(02)00057-1.
Buchanan, R. 1992. “Wicked problems in design thinking.” Des. Issues 8 (2): 5–21. https://doi.org/10.2307/1511637.
Byrne, B. M. 1994. Structural equation modeling with EQS and EQS/Windows: Basic concepts, applications, and programming. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Chan, E., M. W. Chan, D. Scott, and A. Chan. 2002. “Educating the 21st century construction professionals.” J. Prof. Issues Eng. Educ. Pract. 128 (1): 44–51. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1052-3928(2002)128:1(44).
Charnley, F., M. Lemon, and S. Evans. 2011. “Exploring the process of whole system design.” Des. Stud. 32 (2): 156–179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2010.08.002.
Coates, J. 1993. “Facilitating sustainable development: Role of engineer.” J. Civ. Eng. Educ. 119 (3): 1–225. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1052-3928(1993)119:3(225).
Cohen, J. 1988. “The concepts of power analysis.” In Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences, 1–17. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Coleman, E., T. Shealy, J. Grohs, and A. Godwin. 2019. “Design thinking among first-year and senior engineering students: A cross-sectional, national study measuring perceived ability.” J. Eng. Educ. 109 (1): 72–87. https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20298.
Connor, A., S. Karmokar, and C. Whittington. 2015. “From STEM to STEAM: Strategies for enhancing engineering and technology education.” Int. J. Eng. Pedagogy 5 (2): 37–47. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijep.v5i2.4458.
Crilly, N. 2015. “Fixation and creativity in concept development: The attitudes and practices of expert designers.” Des. Stud. 38 (May): 54–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2015.01.002.
Cropley, D. H. 2015. “Embedding creativity in engineering education.” In Creativity in engineering, 257–289. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier.
Cross, N. 1982. “Designerly ways of knowing.” Des. Stud. 3 (4): 221–227. https://doi.org/10.1016/0142-694X(82)90040-0.
Cross, N. 2006. Designerly ways of knowing. New York: Springer.
Daly, S., E. Mosyjowski, and C. Seifert. 2014. “Teaching creativity in engineering courses.” J. Eng. Educ. 103 (3): 417–449. https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20048.
Darke, J. 1979. “The primary generator and the design process.” Des. Stud. 1 (1): 36–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/0142-694X(79)90027-9.
Dorst, K. 2011. “The core of ‘design thinking’ and its application.” Des. Stud. 32 (6): 521–532. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2011.07.006.
Dorst, K., and N. Cross. 2001. “Creativity in the design process: Co-evolution of problem–solution.” Des. Stud. 22 (5): 425–437. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0142-694X(01)00009-6.
Dym, C. L., A. M. Agogino, O. Eris, D. D. Frey, and L. J. Leifer. 2005. “Engineering design thinking, teaching, and learning.” J. Eng. Educ. 94 (1): 103–120. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2168-9830.2005.tb00832.x.
Ercan, F., D. Sale, and N. Kristian. 2016. “Innovative curriculum to enhance the learning experience of electrical and mechanical engineering students.” Int. J. Eng. Pedagogy 6 (3): 37–44. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijep.v6i3.5765.
Foley, S., and K. Kazerounian. 2007. “Barriers to creativity in engineering education: A study of instructors and students perceptions.” In Proc., ASME 2007 Int. Design Engineering Technical Conf. and Computers and Information in Engineering Conf., 539–555. Las Vegas: ASME.
Goel, V., and P. Pirolli. 1989. “Motivating the notion of generic design within information-processing theory: The design problem space.” AI Mag. 10 (1): 19. https://doi.org/10.1609/aimag.v10i1.726.
Goldschmidt, G., and P. Rodgers. 2013. “The design thinking approaches of three different groups of designers based on self-reports.” Des. Stud. 34 (4): 454–471. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2013.01.004.
Günther, J., and K. Ehrlenspiel. 1999. “Comparing designers from practice and designers with systematic design education.” Des. Stud. 20 (5): 439–451. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0142-694X(99)00019-8.
Hillier, W., J. Musgrove, and P. O’Sullivan. 1984. “Knowledge and design.” In Developments in design methodology. Dordrecht, Amsterdam: Springer.
Howe, S. 2010. “Where are we now? Statistics on capstone courses nationwide.” In Advances in engineering education. Washington, DC: American Society for Engineering Education.
Kleinsmann, M., R. Valkenburg, and J. Sluijs. 2017. “Capturing the value of design thinking in different innovation practices.” Int. J. Des. 11 (2): 25–40.
Kuhn, S. 2001. “Learning from the architecture studio: Implications for project-based pedagogy.” Int. J. Eng. Educ. 17 (4–5): 349–352.
Labossière, P., and N. Roy. 2015. “Original concept for a civil engineering capstone project.” J. Civ. Eng. Educ. 141 (1): 1. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EI.1943-5541.0000199.
Lawson, B. 1993. “Parallel lines of thought.” Lang. Des. 1 (4): 357–366.
Lawson, B. 2006. How designers think: The design process demystified. 4 ed. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier.
Little, P., and M. Cardenas. 2001. “Use of ‘studio’ methods in the introductory engineering design curriculum.” J. Eng. Educ. 90 (3): 309–318. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2168-9830.2001.tb00610.x.
Maher, M. L., and J. Poon. 1996. “Modeling design exploration as co-evolution.” Comput.-Aided Civ. Infrastruct. Eng. 11 (3): 195–209. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8667.1996.tb00323.x.
McKilligan, S., N. Fila, D. Rover, and M. Mina. 2017. “Design thinking as a catalyst for changing teaching and learning practices in engineering.” In Proc., Frontiers in Education Conf. New York: IEEE.
Micheli, P., S. Wilner, S. H. Bhatti, M. Mura, and M. Beverland. 2019. “Doing design thinking: Conceptual review, synthesis, and research agenda.” J. Prod. Innov. Manage. 36 (2): 124–148. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpim.12466.
National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The engineer of 2020: Visions of engineering in the new century. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
National Academy of Engineering. 2005. Educating the engineer of 2020: Adapting engineering education to the new century. Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences.
Nix, A. A., M. T. Lemke, R. M. Arlitt, and R. B. Stone. 2016. “Design education across disciplines: Opportunities for curriculum advancement.” In Proc., ASME 2016 Int. Design Engineering Technical Conf. and Computers and Information in Engineering Conf. New York: ASME.
Ott, R., and M. Longnecker. 2001. An introduction to statistical methods and data analysis. Pacific Grove, CA: Thomson Learning.
Pahl, G., W. Beitz, J. Feldhusen, and K. Grote. 2007. Engineering design: A systematic approach. 3rd ed. New York: Springer.
Purcell, A. T., and J. S. Gero. 1996. “Design and other types of fixation.” Des. Stud. 17 (4): 363–383. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0142-694X(96)00023-3.
Roozenburg, N. F. M., and N. G. Cross. 1991. “Models of the design process: Integrating across the disciplines.” Des. Stud. 12 (4): 215–220. https://doi.org/10.1016/0142-694X(91)90034-T.
Rosseel, Y. 2012. “lavaan: An R package for structural equation modeling.” J. Stat. Software 48 (2): 1–36.
Schön, D. 1983. The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. Farnham, UK: Ashgate.
Shealy, T., R. Valdes-Vasquez, L. Klotz, G. Potvin, A. Godwin, J. Cribbs, and Z. Hazari. 2016. “Career outcome expectations related to sustainability among students intending to major in civil engineering.” J. Civ. Eng. Educ. 142 (1): 04015008. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EI.1943-5541.0000253.
Schumacker, R. E., and R. G. Lomax. 2004. A beginner’s guide to structural equation modeling. 2nd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Sola, E., R. Hoekstra, S. Fiore, and P. McCauley. 2017. “An investigation of the state of creativity and critical thinking in engineering undergraduates.” Creative Educ. 8 (9): 1495. https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2017.89105.
Stein, S., and R. Hess. 2003. “Here comes the judge—Duties and responsibilities of design professionals when deciding disputes.” J. Civ. Eng. Educ. 129 (3): 177. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1052-3928(2003)129:3(177).
Treffinger, D., G. Young, E. Shelby, and C. Shepardson. 2002. Assessing creativity: A guide for educators. Sarasota, CT: National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented.
Van der Bijl-Brouwer, M., and K. Dorst. 2017. “Advancing the strategic impact of human-centered design.” Des. Stud. 53 (Nov): 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2017.06.003.
Visser, W. 2009. “Design: One, but in different forms.” Des. Stud. 30 (3): 187–223. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2008.11.004.
Wilkinson, S., and R. L. Scofield. 2002. “Integrated management curriculum for civil engineers and architects.” J. Civ. Eng. Educ. 128 (3): 125–130. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1052-3928(2002)128:3(125).
Yilmaz, S., and S. R. Daly. 2016. “Feedback in concept development: Comparing design disciplines.” Des. Stud. 45 (Part A): 137–158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2015.12.008.
Youmans, R. 2011. “The effects of physical prototyping and group work on the reduction of design fixation.” Des. Stud. 32 (2): 115–138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2010.08.001.
Zancul, E. D., L. F. Durao, R. D. Lopes, D. Nakano, P. Blikstein, G. Majzoub, and D. Dalmon. 2017. “An empirical study on design-based vs. traditional approaches in capstone courses in engineering education.” Int. J. Eng. Educ. 33 (5): 1543–1560.
Zimring, C., and D. L. Craig. 2001. “Defining design between domains: An argument for design research a la carte.” In Design knowing and learning: Cognition in design education, edited by C. Eastman, M. McCracken, and W. Newstetter, 125–146. Oxford, UK: Elsevier.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 9, 2020
Accepted: Sep 9, 2020
Published online: Nov 27, 2020
Published in print: Apr 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Apr 27, 2021
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.