Julian Ashby Burruss

A History of the Professionalization of Interior Design Viewed Through Three Case Studies of the Process of Licensure Marilyn Corson Whitney Dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In Environmental Design and Planning Joseph V. Rees, Co-Chair Terry L. Clements, Co-Chair Humberto Rodriguez-Camilloni, Member David Dugas, Member April 18, 2008 Blacksburg, Virginia Keywords: Interior design, professions, professionalization theory, licensing, built environment and gender Copyright December 3, 2008 A History of the Professionalization of Interior Design Viewed Through Three Case Studies of the Process of Licensure Marilyn Corson Whitney ABSTRACT Since the 1950s, interior decoration evolved into interior design. Throughout the 1970s, all of the components for professionalization were in place, but it was not until the 1990s that the final transformation made interior design into a profession. This dissertation documents these changes and posits that is the conflicts inherent in the process of licensure transformed it into a profession. The transformation of interior design is examined through the lens of the theory of professions, especially Andrew Abbott’s delineation of transformation through conflict. The historical case studies of the legislative process were of the District of Columbia, which has practice legislation; the Commonwealth of Virginia; which has title legislation; and the State of Ohio, which has no licensing of interior designers as of 2007. Data collection was by interviews with participants of the process of licensure and with the leadership of the interior design community. In addition, primary and secondary documents examined include books, journals, trade magazines, and documents from professional organizations. Specifically, this dissertation addresses these questions: Is interior design a profession? If so, what forces transformed interior design into a profession? And, how is interior design different from architecture? This dissertation posits that interior design is unique from architecture because it developed in home economic programs at state universities during the 1950s, 1960s and A History of the Professionalization of Interior Design 1970s. In this locale, the primary focus of interior design was the micro-environment based on the theory of behavior. This gives students and practitioners a unique viewpoint that allows for the consideration for each end user as integral to the design process. These attributes contribute to the unique qualities of the services interior design offers and separate it from those of architecture. A simplified definition of interior design that I developed is that interior design utilizes the theory of behavior to design spaces in a micro-environment that function at a safe and efficient level for every end user and are aesthetically pleasing. Finally, interior designers need to understand that the strength of their position in the built environment is in the unique services they offers and celebrate their qualities as outlined in this document. iii A History of the Professionalization of Interior Design Acknowledgements There are so many people to thank that one hardly knows where to begin. Special thanks to all of the professionals who were interviewed as part of this process. Their dedication to their professions is documented here. In the order that the interviews took place they were: Barbara Goodwin, Brian C. Collins, Jeff Kenney, Kathy Cook, Mark Courtney, Gary Volz, Gayle Kreutzfeld, Terri Maurer, Kayme Dunn, Holly Mattson, Michael Alin, Deanna Waldron, Vincent Carter, Andrea Kelly, Janet Kane, Robert Boynton, Anne Putney Manson, Stacey D’Aquila Hatfield, Eric Weidegreen, Cynthia Faulhaber, Marci Zimmerman, Terry Clements, and Dr. Crystal Weaver. I must also thank my committee for their guidance. Dr. Joseph V. Rees, Terry L. Clements, Dr. Humberto Rodriguez-Camilloni, and Dave Dugas. I would also like to thank Dr. Marilyn Casto who guided me through the proposal process and literature review and Chriss Coon for all of her support and help with the myriad of forms required in this process. Dr. Jim Jones and Dr. Peter Wallenstein who gave me moral support and invaluable guidance as my dissertation progressed. My experience at Virginia Tech was life transforming even before the events of April 16, 2007. A part of my heart will always reside in the beautiful rolling hills of Virginia. I must thank my transcribers for their hard work of writing out 700 minutes of interviews. They include Sreevidya Subramanian, Suzanna Ward, and especially Laurie Good who alone did half of the transcriptions and made this dissertation possible when work had come to a standstill for lack of a transcriber. Thank you to my English editors Cynthia B. Faulhaber, and K.C. Arceneaux, and my content editor Terry Cements and Hannah Mendoza-Torres. I cannot thank Cynthia iv A History of the Professionalization of Interior Design and Terry enough for the hours spent shaping and honing my writing into something that is a semblance of scholarship. Cindy’s exquisite consultation about all aspects of my dissertation refined my thinking and clarified my thoughts, which of course transformed my writing. Her editing guided me into a more scholarly mode and sometimes even made me laugh with her pithy comments. Terry examined the content with a fine-tooth comb to make sure it was reflecting her detailed knowledge of licensing and licensing issues. I could not have done this work without their support and hours of endless editing. I also would like to thank Mary Agnes G. Carter, who hired me at the age of 25 as an interior designer. She encouraged me to take the NCIDQ exam, join ASID and worked with me on many ASID projects to advance our profession in western Michigan. Her mentorship, support, and encouragement set me on my personal road to professionalization. I know that I would not have been successful in completing this document in a timely manner without my study group the Mad CAUS. Our group studied, brainstormed, commiserated, and celebrated together. I owe a large part of my success to these beautiful, smart, young women. Some of their names have recently changed with Doctor of Philosophy added: Dr. Nancy Cordova, Dr. Sarah Elmasry, Dr. Elizabeth Grant, Dr. Tao Huang, Kristin Maki, Dr. Ceylan Oner and the honorary Mad Claves, Katya and Bidou. v A History of the Professionalization of Interior Design Index Abstract ii Acknowledgments iv Index vi Chapter 1 – Introduction 1 Chapter 2 – Literature Review 14 Section 1 – Introduction 14 Section 2 – Theory of Professions 22 Section 3 – History of Interior Design 42 Section 4 – Professionalization of Architecture 54 Section 5 – Differentiation of Interior Design and Architecture 66 Chapter 3 – History of Professionalization of Interior Design 73 Table 1: Comparison of Google Search about Theory 77 Chapter 4 – State of the Profession 89 Section 1 – Position of Interior Design Professional Organizations 89 on Licensure Section 2 – Position of the American Institute of Architects 113 on Interior Design Licensure Section 3 – Gender Issues 128 Section 4 – Building Codes 137 Section 5 – Justification for Licensure 146 Chapter 5 – Case Studies 153 Section 1 – Washington, D.C. 153 Section 2 – The Commonwealth of Virginia 180 vi A History of the Professionalization of Interior Design Section 3 – Ohio 196 Chapter 6 – Conclusion 229 Bibliography 243 Appendix 250 Appendix A – Interview Waivers 250 Appendix B – Interview Questions 253 Appendix C – List of Appellations of Organizations 254 Appendix D – Timeline History of Interior Design in United States 256 Appendix E – Archived Documents at ASID – Timeline Washington, D.C. 258 Appendix F – Archived Documents at ASID – Timeline Virginia 270 Appendix G – Archived Documents at ASID – Timeline Ohio 281 Endnotes 301 vii Chapter 1 – Introduction Beginning in the 1950s, interior decoration evolved into interior design and in the process of licensure became a profession. Interior designers continued to perform the services of interior decorators, selecting all of the materials that the building occupants touch, see, or use. This transformation to interior design expanded the concerns about aesthetics to incorporate space planning. This new profession applied psychological and sociological theory to enhance the environment and to modify the behavior of end users, which allowed each end user to function at an optimal and safe level. This document establishes the history of the professionalization of interior design and examines efforts to seek licensure in three jurisdictions in the United States1 using the framework of the theory of professions. For the purpose of this study, the use of the words “regulation” and “licensing” were generic terms indicating a governmental action. Nonetheless, when discussing individual jurisdictions2 the use of different terminology in relation to that specific jurisdiction indicates a precise meaning as defined by local laws and regulations. For example, when referring to licensing in Virginia, use of the term “certification” denotes the specific level of regulation related to the scope of work in Virginia. Licensure is a legislative process that establishes minimum criteria for the practice of a profession in order to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public. It allows the client who hires a registered professional to know they are hiring

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