Examining vignettes in AEC research – how are they used, and what are they good for?

Gledson, Barry and Downs, Maddy (2017) Examining vignettes in AEC research – how are they used, and what are they good for? In: 3rd International Sustainable Ecological Engineering Design for Society (SEEDS) Conference, 13th -14th September 2017, Leeds.

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Abstract

Prominent concerns of the SEEDS research community revolve around the intentions, ethics, behaviours and standards of designers, constructors and users of our built assets. One way of examining such 'approaches' is through the application of well-considered vignette type questions embedded within appropriate research instruments. The vignette technique presents research participants with a credibly constructed 'hypothetical' scenario that facilitates reflection, and can potentially reveal normative behaviours, specifically 'how' participants would react in such circumstances. An appraisal of the typical research methods used in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) literature reveals an apparent underuse of such a data collection technique, and a systematic type literature review reveals several other uses of the term. The aims of this work are to explore the use of vignettes across the wider AEC literature, introduce the usefulness of vignettes as a data collection tool, and consider their suitability for the purposes of the agenda of the SEEDS community. The work concludes with the inclusion of an exemplar 'ethical dilemma' vignette to demonstrate the technique and a call for greater use of more 'sustainability-focused' vignettes, in future empirical research work.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Uncontrolled Keywords: research methods, survey research, vignettes
Subjects: G200 Operational Research
H200 Civil Engineering
K100 Architecture
K200 Building
K900 Others in Architecture, Building and Planning
N200 Management studies
X200 Research and Study Skills in Education
Department: Faculties > Engineering and Environment > Mechanical and Construction Engineering
Related URLs:
Depositing User: Barry Gledson
Date Deposited: 25 Sep 2017 16:02
Last Modified: 01 Aug 2021 09:33
URI: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/31903

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