COMPUTER USAGE IN INTERIOR DESIGN: PROFESSIONAL APPLICATIONS AND PEDAGOGICAL IMPLICATIONS by ZANE DOUGLAS CURRY, B.F.A., M.S.H.E. A'DISSERTATION IN HOME ECONOMICS Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved May, 1992 Copyright, Zane D. Curry, 1992 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation is the result of time, commitment, and support of many individuals. First, I would like to thank Dr. JoAnn Shroyer, chairperson of my dissertation committee, for her support, guidance, and friendship throughout my graduate studies at Texas Tech University. I wish to express my gratitude to my committee members Dr. A. W. Gustafson, Dr. Marie Gentry, Dr. Ruth Martin, and Dr. Joe Cornett for their time and expertise. With sincere appreciation, I would like to thank the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research, the national offices of the American Society of Interior Designers and Institute of Business Designers for their support of this study. Finally, I wish to thank my children for their support and understanding. Also, I wish to thank my wife, Danna J. Curry, for her help and understanding, and most of all, for her confidence in me. 11 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i i ABSTRACT vii LIST OF TABLES ix CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION 1 Evolution of Interior Design and Technology 1 Development of Computers as Educational Tools 3 Computer Software Applications 4 Computer-Assisted Instruction 4 Guidelines for Determining Competencies 5 Purpose of the Study 6 Assumptions of the Study 8 Limitations of the Study 8 Research Questions 8 Operational Definitions of Terms 10 Summary 11 II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 13 History and Maturation of the Interior Design Profession 13 Need for Efficacy 15 History of FIDER 15 Levels of FIDER Accreditation 16 FIDER Standards and Guidelines for the First Professional Degree Program 16 • • • 111 Minimum Levels of Student Achievement ... 18 Professional Viewpoints of Entry-Level Competencies 20 Computers in Education 21 Educational Controversy 21 Computer Training 23 Using Computer Spreadsheet Applications 24 An Advantage of CAD Use in the Educational Program 2 5 Another Educational Use of the Computer 2 6 The Future of Computers and Education ... 27 Computer Use in Interior Design 28 Current Developments in CAD 28 Future CAD Use in Interior Design 30 Professional Attitudes Concerning CAD Usage 31 Summary 3 3 III. METHODOLOGY 35 Description of the Sample 3 6 Description of the Instrument 37 Procedure 38 Statistical Treatment of the Data 39 IV. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE DATA 41 General Frequencies 4 3 Demographic Data of ASID and IBD Professional Members 4 3 Current Computer Usage 49 IV Level of Achievement for Entry-Level Employees Future Trends in Computer Use Demographic Information for FIDER Institutions Computer Usage in the Interior Design Curriculum Type of Classroom Instruction Computer-Aided Design Drafting Tool Usage Instructional Materials Used in Computer Integrated Courses Level of Student Achievement Required by FIDER-Accredited Programs Research Questions V. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS Summary of the Study Conclusions Recommendations Further Research REFERENCES APPENDICES A. APPROVAL FOR PROTECTION OF HUMAN SUBJECTS B. PROFESSIONAL INTERIOR DESIGNERS' COMPUTER USE QUESTIONNAIRE C. COMPUTER USE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR FIDER- ACCREDITED INTERIOR DESIGN PROGRAMS .... D. COVER LETTER FOR INTERIOR DESIGN PROFESSIONALS, FIRST MAILING E. COVER LETTER FOR FIDER-ACCREDITED PROGRAMS, FIRST MAILING F. COVER LETTER FOR INTERIOR DESIGN PROFESSIONALS, SECOND MAILING 117 G. COVER LETTER FOR FIDER-ACCREDITED PROGRAMS, SECOND MAILING 118 VI ABSTRACT This study surveyed professional members of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and Institute of Business Designers (IBD), ascertained computer competencies desired for entry-level employment by interior design graduates, and determined demographic characteristics such as type of practice, computer use, size of firm, etc. This study also compared competencies desired by professional interior designers with the computer competencies required by the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research (FIDER) first professional level degree accredited programs, and surveyed FIDER-accredited programs and determined how interior design students were being instructed in computer applications. Questionnaires were mailed to 640 ASID and 160 IBD randomly selected professional members. The instrument contained questions concerning size of firm, type of practice, educational background, computer applications, and attitudes toward the use of the computer in the future of the interior design industry. A separate questionnaire containing questions concerning pedagogical methods, media, and requirements was mailed to representatives of the 7 3 first professional level degree programs accredited by FIDER. Forty-two percent of the IBD and 20 percent of the ASID professional members, and 63 percent of the representatives • • vii of the FIDER-accredited programs returned questionnaires. The data indicate that professional interior designers require an awareness level of student achievement for computer systems. However, professional interior designers indicated that interior design graduates should be competent in the use of computer-aided design/drafting (CAD) (73.4%) and word processing (57.4%), and the majority believed that the use of computers will be increasingly important in the future. Of the 46 FIDER-accredited programs, with a total enrollment of 5,315 students, the majority (73.9%) required a level of student achievement for computer systems higher than the "awareness" level recommended in the FIDER standards and guidelines. FIDER-accredited programs, as a whole, are currently meeting the entry-level computer skill requirements of professional interior designers. Professional interior designers indicate that the use of computers in the future will continue to escalate and will be essential to the interior design graduate. Therefore, educators must continually evaluate curricula, methods, and media to stay abreast of industry standards. Vlll LIST OF TABLES 1. Frequency distribution for majority of firm's projects 44 2. Frequency distribution for number of employees 4 5 3. Frequency distribution of reported job titles by professional interior designers 4 6 4. Frequency distribution of highest level of education reported by professional interior designers 48 5. Frequency distribution for firm's current computer applications use 50 6. Frequency distribution of high level of ability for specific computer applications reported by professional interior designers 52 7. Frequency distribution of computer applications professional interior designers would like to learn to use more effectively 54 8. Frequency distribution for firm's required level of achievement for computer systems .. 55 9. Frequency distribution for firm's desired level of achievement for specific computer applications 57 10. Frequency distribution of computer competencies interior design graduates should possess according to professional interior designers 58 11. Frequency distribution of computer applications that will be more important in the future than they are today 60 12. Frequency distribution of computer applications that will be essential for professional interior designers 62 13. Frequency distribution of students by academic classification 63 IX 14. Frequency distribution for number of years computers have been integrated into interior design curriculum 65 15. Frequency distribution for the number of faculty who teach courses in which students use computers 66 16. Frequency distribution of course level by year with computer applications required by FIDER-accredited programs 68 17. Frequency distribution of type of classroom instruction in courses with computer applications required 69 18. Frequency distribution of work stations per course with computer applications required 71 19. Mean number of work stations per course with computer applications required 72 20. Mean number of students per work station in courses with computer applications required 73 21. Computer applications taught as part of interior design curriculum by FIDER- accredited programs 74 22. Rank order of instructional emphasis of computer applications employed by FIDER- accredited programs 7 6 23. Frequency distribution of types of computer systems used for specific computer applications by FIDER-accredited programs .. 77 24. Frequency distribution of computer-aided design drafting tool usage by FIDER- accredited programs 79 25. Frequency distribution of reported texts, tutorials, and study guides used in computer- aided design courses 81 26. Frequency distribution of reported software packages used for the instruction of computer- aided design 82 27. Frequency distribution of reported software packages used for the instruction of database management 85 28. Frequency distribution of reported software packages used for the instruction of spreadsheet applications 86 29. Frequency distribution of reported software packages used for the instruction of word processing 88 30. Frequency distribution for level of student achievement required for computer systems by FIDER-accredited programs 90 31. Frequency distribution of computer competencies interior design graduates should possess according to FIDER-accredited programs 91 XI CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Evolution of Interior Design and Technology The field of interior