The role of the autobiographical experiences with emotional significance of an architect in design conjecturing

Abstract

The dissertation investigates the role of autobiographical memories with emotional significance in architectural design conjecturing. The dissertation is structured as a set of individual articles (chapters), each can be read independently. To set the background to the empirical research, an overview of models of the design process, intuition in design, memory, emotion and place are presented. The empirical research consists of comparison of two case studies. Ethnographic methods were used for data collection. Direct analysis, indirect analysis (content analysis of protocols) and analysis of language for affect were used to scrutinize the data. Findings clearly indicate the utilization of autobiographical memories with emotional significance in design conjecturing. The study describes the types of autobiographical memories with emotional significance and purpose of their use in design conjecturing. In general, the dissertation study indicated that half of thought content used by architects during design conjecturing comes from their autobiographical experience. At the same time, personal experiences of students are neglected in architectural education. Overview of the current status of architectural education leads to the argument that academia is due for a paradigm change. The dissertation provides suggestion on the direction of changes in design education.