Adapted slides given in the Research Skills Lecture for the MA Design Management at Winchester School of Art, December 2016. Feedback from this lecture was quite good, so I've decided to share with you. Copyright: Wanick, V. 2016

1. Research
Skills
Content Review – digital version
Vanissa Wanick

2. What we will review today
(briefly)
Literature review
◉ How to narrow
your literature
review
◉ Merge theory and
context
Research gap
◉ How to find the
research gap
◉ How to write
about the research
gap
Methodology
◉ How to design
your research
◉ How to write your
methodology

3. The topic: the general area under study
Literature review
Research opportunity
What is known and not known
about the topic already?
Your specific study
Research question
Research aim
Research
objectives
Remember the research funnel?
Source: Adapted from Roberts, 2010

4. Literature review
A review of the existing literature in the field related to your topic
1

5. “
A literature review contains
information, ideas, data and
evidence; it is a selection of
available documents on the topic
and you should evaluate them
critically
(Fisher and Buglear, 2010)

6. Your topic
and
purpose

7. Your topic
and
purpose
the impact of interior
design on health and well
being
Interior design
Health
Ergonomics
Materials
Interior design in
different eras

8. 1. Know the basics first (Main theories? Main frameworks?)
Interior design
(main authors,
main theories,
main
frameworks?)
Health and
design; health
and interior
design
Ergonomics +
Ergonomics and
interior design
Materials;
materials and
interior design

9. 2. From the basics, ask yourself questions related to your
research topic and purpose
What is related to your topic
What is not related to
your topic
What is not related to
your topic
What is related to your topic

10. 1. Know the basics first (Main theories? Main frameworks?)
2. From the basics, ask yourself questions related to your
research topic and purpose
Colour has an impact in interior design and in health (colour psychology)
Different cultures give different meanings to colours
Opportunity to research colour in interior design in different cultures and
its effect in well being (e.g. anxiety, etc.)

11. Think about the context
◉ In which context can you
apply the theory?
◉ What is the purpose of
your research?
Points to remember when
looking at your assignment 1
feedback…
Think about the theory
◉ What are the theories that
could support your study
in that context?
◉ Think about main theories,
main frameworks

12. Think about your research purpose
◉ What do you want to know?
◉ What is the purpose of your research?
◉ Look at your conceptual map for help

13. Write in a few words
◉ What are you researching?
◉ Why are you researching this?

14. Research gap/
opportunity
The research gap/opportunity comes after the literature review
2

15. “
Research gap is the opportunity to
research something; it is the
missing part of the existing
literature
http://mypages.iit.edu/~aroback/research_paper/topic/topic2.html

16. Colour has an impact in interior design and in health (colour psychology)
Different cultures give different meanings to colours
Opportunity to research colour in interior design in different cultures and
its effect in well being (e.g. anxiety, etc.)

17. Writing the research gap
◉ Explain the main issues, ideas, concepts and
frameworks identified in the literature review
◉ Explain how they relate to each other
◉ Explain that there is a need to research the area
that you’ve identified as an opportunity (lack of
research in this area, importance for
contemporary studies in Design Management,
etc.)
◉ Ask the research question

18. Write in a few words
◉ There is an opportunity to research…
◉ Because…

19. “
The research question will guide
the study and it provides
structure for the presentation of
the results of the research
(Roberts, 2010, p136)

20. Framing the research
question
◉ Clear and objective concepts and variables
◉ They are open-ended questions
◉ It should come from your research opportunity
◉ The key elements from your research question
should be in your literature review / it should
make sense!

21. Source: Robson (2002)
Purpose Theory
Research
Methods
Sampling
Strategy
Research
Questions

22. 1. How can colour in interior design reduce anxiety of young adults in the UK?
https://cirt.gcu.edu/research/developmentresources/tutorials/question

23. Framing the research
question
◉ How can colour in interior design reduce
anxiety of young adults in the UK?
HOW
Understand
Explain
Explore
Discover…
The other elements of the RQ should appear in
your literature review and research gap
http://www.socscidiss.bham.ac.uk/research-
question.html

24. Your turn
◉ What is your research question?
◉ Which verbs are related to your research
question?

25. “
The research aim should be clear
and concise; it is an intention,
aspiration, what you hope to
achieve at the end of the project

26. Framing the research aim
◉ What will be done (outcome), who is it for
(beneficiaries) and why it needs to be done
(purpose)

27. What is the potential research
outcome?
◉ This is not what you expect from your results,
this is what you expect from your research
◉ What you hope your research will achieve

28. Your turn
◉ What you hope your research will achieve?
◉ Who will benefit from it?

29. Framing the research aim
To _____________ ______________ _________ ____________ ________________
(verb) (outcome) (verb) (beneficiaries) (purpose)
To develop a set of design guidelines to help interior designers to design spaces that could
reduce anxiety in young adults
(verb) (outcome) (verb) (beneficiaries) (purpose)

30. Objective 1
Objective 2
Objective 3

31. “
Research objectives are goals/
steps; they are specific statements
that define measurable outcomes
http://learn.solent.ac.uk/mod/book/view.php?id=2744&chapterid=1293

32. Framing the research
objectives
To…
Identify
Classify
Understand
Make recommendations
Explore
Explain
Comprehend
Outline
…something
Something specific that
should fit your research
aim and research
question

33. Objectives Description
Objective 1
Objective 2
Objective 3
Your turn

34. Methodology
The methodology comes after the research gap and the identification
of the research question
3

35. The topic: the general area under study
Literature review
Research opportunity
What is known and not known
about the topic already?
Your specific study
Research question
Research aim
Research
objectives
Remember the research funnel?
Source: Adapted from Roberts, 2010 Methods

36. “
The methodology proposes your
data collection methods; this
should be related to your research
objectives and aims

37. Data collection methods
◉ Observations, focus groups, interviews, surveys
and questionnaires, analysis of archival material
(Desk analysis) and case study
◉ How do they fit your research objective?
◉ What are the implications from your chosen
method? (e.g. ethics, etc.?)
◉ You may want to explore the problem first
through secondary research and then do primary
research => depends on your objectives

38. Objectives Description
Method
Objective 1
Objective 2
Objective 3
Your turn
To understand the types of colour
application in interior design
Case study analysis
of colour application
in young adults’
bedrooms

39. Tips to write the methodology
◉ Merge your research
objectives with the chosen
methods
◉ Explain why the methods
fit the objectives
◉ Consider the limitations
and the implications of the
chosen methods
◉ Do you need to consider
ethics? How are you going to
access the data?
◉ Don’t forget: Consider the
strategy analysis of your
data. How are you going to
analyse it? How does it fit
within your research?
◉ Write a plan

40. (what?) Packaging designed using unsustainable materials is becoming
a major issue for multinational brands (why?) that exacts an enormous
toll on the planet’s natural resources. Understanding the causes of this
escalation, thus, is an imperative research agenda. This research,
(when?) to be carried out in summer 2015, will survey (who?) a sample
of 30 – 55 year old health and beauty product consumers (where?) in
Hampshire, UK. (how?) It will use a qualitative approach, combining
focus groups and in-depth interviews to identify consumer
perceptions of these issues.
Source: Rudestam and Newton (2007)
Using who, what, why, when, where and how?

41. Your turn
(what?)
(why?)
(when?)
(who?)
(where?)
(how?)

42. Data analysis
◉ How are you going to
analyse your data?
◉ For that, you need to know
the main frameworks from
the literature review
◉ Go back to your
conceptual map
◉ What are the main
theories?
◉ What are the important
elements for your research?
◉ What are the important
factors for your research?

43. Objectives Description
Method
Analysis
Objective 1
Objective 2
Objective 3
Your turn
To understand the types of
colour application in interior
design
Case study
analysis of colour
application in
young adults’
bedrooms
Visual analysis of colour
application; looking for
colour saturation,
pigment, etc.

44. Tips to design your research
◉ You could link methods and the objectives using
the Double-Diamond framework for research

45. (Image Copyright: Design Council 2014)

47. The one page
statement
The statement should be objective and direct to the point
4

48. RESEARCH PROBLEMS STATEMENT
There is a rising popularity of social media that might help local brands to enable two-
way communication with customers worldwide (Gensler et. al., 2013). However, the idea
of using social media as a powerful brand communication tool is still being
underestimated; almost half of brand professionals did not feel they had the ability to use
social media effectively other than just as a marketing tool (Interbrand, 2012).
POTENTIAL OUTCOME
A design-led strategy and framework that use social media as a platform, in order to improve local brand’s online customer
engagement in order to build long-term relationship with their customers and enhance local brand’s online presence and
experience.
CREATION
IDEA
DEVELOPMENT
PRIMARY RESEARCH
DISCOVERIES
IN-DEPTH
RESEARCH
DEFIN
E
Literature search
and review
Contextual
analysis
Customer Survey
Case studies
Focus groups
Brand owner questionnaire
Expert interviews
Framework
development
Follow up
interviews Framework
finalisation
AIM
To create a strategic design-led framework for local brands using social media as a
platform in order to get global customers to build long-term relationship with them.
METHODOLOGY
KEY RESEARCH QUESTION
How can local brands maximise the use of social media in order to be well received in
multiple countries and get the customers to build long-term relationship with them?
OBJECTIVES
1 To study factors that affect brand-customer relationship & review existing branding strategies that influence customer loyalty.
2 To compare and contrast the level of local brands’ current online presence as compared to its physical retail presence.
3 To discover challenges that local brands currently face upon communicating their brands within the social media during the
customer journey experience.
4 To investigate the key variables that different range of social media platforms have, and identify opportunities and barriers
that social media might have as a brand communication tool for local brands.
Soucrce: Adapted from Wikimedia Commons,
Shelley Graves and Elegant Themes
Adapted from Irene Wikanta 2013

49. Your turn
Research problem statement
Key research question
Aim
Objectives
Methodology
Potential outcome

50. Discuss in pairs

51. Irene Wikanta 2013
This is a Gantt Chart

52. Any questions ?
v.w.vieira@soton.ac.uk
Good
luck!
😉