Lecture
Thursday, September 23 · 8:00pm – 10:00pm
Marty Gage and Spencer Murrell from Lextant, will outline the basics of design research, provide tips and techniques to make design research easier for students to complete within short timelines and design cycles. The talk will also provide recommendations and insights into how to display design research in portfolios.
Workshop
Friday, September 24 · 9:30am – 5:00pm
Saturday, September 25 · 9:30am – 12:30pm
I would say this workshop was a nice refresher for conducting contextual research through word and image associations. However, I am reminded of the problems we face as students trying to conduct thorough research with participants. If we are trying to research subjects outside of our age and demographic groups, obtaining participants can be tricky and just as time consuming as conducting the actual research. Obviously the professional researcher has access to benefits such as rewards and companies to locate the appropriate participants.
As I spent the day wandering around attempting to talk to high school students for my studio research, I questioned how this can be done differently. I believe I have great observational skills and can acquire a lot of information from simply watching people and their interactions, but of course I understand the importance of first hand interviews and direct questions. I just wish it were less awkward and intimidating. Anyone have some suggestions or tips?
Charisse Bennett 