DESIGN RESEARCH METHODOLOGY: Assignment 1 (Research Proposal)

31/03/2022 - 21/04/2022 (Week 01 - Week 04)
ALICIA TENG YI LING / 0345159 / BDCM
DESIGN RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
ASSIGNMENT 1 / Research Proposal

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LECTURE

Week 01 / Research

In our first lesson, Dr. Hayati briefed us on the MIB and gave us a lecture to help us gain a better understanding of what will have to expected and have to be done for the research proposal.

What is Design Research Methodology about?

It gives designers the ability to critically analyse articles and observe them objectively. In this module, we will have to determine a design flaw related to our degree specializations, then select a research methodology and elaborate/discuss the findings and results through data analysis.

Why should I conduct research?

Conducting research has the ability to establish a valuable network where your findings and documentation can be recognized by other people.

How would one start researching?

To start, identify your topic/field of interest and then study the subject. Following this, think about the problem you want to define and determine the research problem in a statement that identifies the gap. 

Week 02 / Problem Statement, Research Question and Objective, Hypothesis, Variables

Problem Statement

A problem statement is a concise description of a problem, issue, or area of improvement that needs to be addressed. It identifies the gap between the problem and the goal of a process or product. It lets the reader understand the research problem of a research. 

Research Question

A research question is an answerable question about a specific concern or issue, something that you want to study. It is the initial step in a research and the foundation of the research, i.e: the whole research project will be based on the research question. 

Steps to write a Research Question:

1. Specify the concern or issue
2. Determine what you wish to ascertain about the concern or issue
3. Write what you discovered in the previous step into a question
4. Check if the question can be answered
5. Ensure that the question is not too general or specific

Research Objectives

A research objective depicts what the researcher wants to achieve in their research. It steers the actions and decisions made during the research process.

Hypothesis

A hypothesis is a prediction on what will happen between two or more variables. If the study itself is exploratory, the hypothesis should then explain what is expected to occur during the course of the research.

The hypothesis statement does not always have to be true. In the event that the research discovers that the original hypothesis is incorrect, he or she may suggest other options that can be investigated in future studies. 

Variables

They are something that can be alternated, limited or varied. By changed certain variables and measuring the effects it causes on other variables, this can determine if a change to one thing creates a change to something else.

Week 03 / Research Questions, Research Objectives

Research Questions

Research question determines the methods and procedures that the researcher conducts to provide answers to these questions. Additionally, it can be used to ascertain if a hypothesis is true or false. 

Research Objectives

Research objective is from problem statement or research question. It should be clear, concise and straightforward. 

A good research objective is:

S: Specific
M: Measurable
A: Attainable
R: Realistic
T: Time Bound

Inductive Approach

Fig 1.1 Steps of an Inductive Approach
Source: Lecture Slides

Utilised in the event that there is no existing literature/research on the topic, essentially when there is no theory or doctrine to test. 

Deductive Approach

 

Fig 1.2 Steps of a Deductive Approach
Source: Lecture Slides

This is utilised when there is a theory to test. Research using deductive approach begins with a theory and then carries out studies/tests to determine the validity of that theory.

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INSTRUCTIONS

 

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Assignment 01: Research Proposal

Week 1

Fig 1.1 Draft 1 of Research Proposal

During the first week of the semester, I went through some ideas of what I could do for this module. I decided that I could research Virtual Reality (VR) Sickness or as it is also known, Cybersickness. I wanted to research on why it happens to users and how it could be improved through quality UI Design. For example, something related to canvas size, pixel velocity, navigation systems and menus, etc.

Week 2 

Fig 1.2 Draft 2 of Research Proposal

After this week's tutorial, we were instructed to add our research problem, research questions, research objectives, problems statements and to elaborate more on our current writings. For my feedback, Dr. Hayati strongly suggested that I should be much more specific on my chosen topic as VR has already been widely researched and studied further upon by many experienced people. Additionally, because of the nature of wearing the hardware in VR it is bound to cause cybersickness regardless. 

After much thought, I decided that it would be best to change my topic early as to not waste time, to something else that I have always been interested in. Particularly, interactive exhibits in art museums.

Week 3

 

Fig 1.3 Draft 3 of Research Proposal

In this week, I updated some things in my proposal. In the tutorial, I informed Dr. Hayati of my decision to change entirely to a new, unrelated topic that I believe is related to my specialisation (UI/UX Design). I explained that I wish to study the UI/UX design in art museums and see how it's levels of accessibility and interactivity is for people with visual disabilities. 

I'm quite happy with the current topic now and Dr. Hayati approved of it but suggested I conduct more research regarding it and to be more specific on what my research objectives and research questions are. Additionally, she suggested I determine what kind of visual disability I will focus on. For example, will I choose a fully blind target audience, partially blind, colourblind, etc.

Fig 1.4 Draft of Research Proposal Presentation

I also began inputting my work into my presentation slides for submission. 

Week 4

 

Fig 1.5 Draft of Research Proposal

 In the tutorial, Dr. Hayati informed everyone that it would be better if your presentation slides are customized to match the content and aesthetic or your topic. 

I noted down that my problem statement, the gap in the second paragraph, has a significant impact on my rationale and research as Dr. Hayati said that the second assignment in this module is to review secondary research data related to my topic and review it critically.. I feel that my research proposal is quite repetitive and general in some areas. It could be much clearer for readers if I cut out some excess wording so I decided I need to further refine it and be more eloquent and academic with how I write. 

I decided to change the theme I had currently because I thought it looked far too plain so it was not eye catching enough. I also thought I could find a more dynamic theme that would better match my topic. This is the new theme below. 

FINAL RESEARCH PROPOSAL SUBMISSION

Fig 2.1 Final Research Proposal Slides

 

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FEEDBACK

Week 02 - 07/04/2022

• I need to be more specific with my chosen topic as VR has already been extensively studied by many researchers. 
• There may be a lack of support for my research as due to the nature of wearing the VR headset, users will be prone to cybersickness regardless of UI design.

Week 03 - 14/04/2022

• The new research topic is good, but conduct more research on it and be more specific regarding who my target research group is.

Week 04 - 21/04/2022

• General Feedback: Customise the presentation Slides to match the content and aesthetic of your chosen topic.
• Specific Feedback: Revise the gap in my problem statement and make sure to identify it clearly for the readers. 

Week 05 - 28/04/2022

Specific Feedback

• My presentation slides theme is very nice and matches well.
• Please do not use white/light text on a dark background (reverse text) as it can be hard to read and hurts the eyes more.
• There is not enough time to do primary research in 9 weeks, need secondary research
• For my research in a Malaysian Context, I will need to refer to online museum curators that are involved with this topic, as Malaysia does not have much research or progress put towards this topic
• Do not put a question as my research topic, I should update that
• It may be difficult to ask blind people questions on this topic as it can feel insensitive to touch on something they don't have. Dr. Hayati suggests that I be careful with my wording and approach.
• I should revisit and consider how much I can accomplish in terms of utilizing your knowledge and understanding with the information that I will gather due to it being a sensitive topic, and the fact that most information gathered would be secondary research. I might not have enough time as well to fully collect the data required. 
• She reminded me to stay within my own domain/area of research and not to stray from it.
• My references (APA style) are wrong. APA referencing style - must include page number from article.

 

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REFLECTION

After completing this assignment, I can affirm that this is definitely one of the most difficult and tasking modules that I will be taking. In my opinion, I am not very eloquent or well versed in any form of writing so there were many, many challenges for me. I am simply not great at writing academically and previously in other academic writings, I often make many mistakes in any formal research. I was unsure of my topic initially and even with my current topic now, I am afraid it will be difficult for me to collect a large amount of data for it.  I'm glad that I chose this topic still as I would like if my research would be able to make a significant or at least a noticeable impact on the lives of visually impaired people living and their experiences visiting museums in Malaysia.

Due to how hard it is for me to write formally, it was really stressful working on this task whilst completing other module projects. Once I pushed through and it was done, I was pretty happy with what I had written and believe it highlighted the issue and my objectives clearly. The case of the slides template is a free one from Microsoft PowerPoint. I adjusted and updated quite a few things to increase it's simplicity and readability as well as to match my topic.