Design Research Methodology - Final Compilation

6 April 2023 - 14 July 2023 / Week 1 - Week 15
Sim Jia Min 0349784
Design Research Methodology / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Final Compilation

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INSTRUCTIONS (MIB)

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Assignment 1: Proposal

Assignment 2: Critical Review

Assignment 3: Research Implementation - Primary Data

Assignment 4: Research Reflection Report and Recorded Presentation

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FEEDBACK

Week 2

Rationale: 

- Only mention surname once the full name is already mentioned. 

- The "graphic design elements & audience engagement" part doesn't match with the "visual narrative film" part, because graphic design elements in film is a big topic to talk about, it can be the opening of the film and anything else instead of only visual narrative of film. So should choose only one between both. 

- Suggestion: can move the "audience engagement" to the "visual narrative part", and make them relate to each other instead of writing graphic design elements 

Problem statement: 

- "Graphic design has become increasingly prevalent" needs supporting cite 

- Overall the draft is there, just need to expand it more 

RO/RQ: 

RO1/RQ1 change to: To identify the role of graphic designs in film / What is the role of graphic designs in film? Or just delete RO1/RQ1

Week 3

Problem statement: add on visual analysis of 2 movies

Week 4

Proposal finalised

Week 6

- don't use thesis, search for articles on Researchgate 

- combine points and elaborate

Week 7
- mentioned the author's surname instead of paper title 

- the strengths of review 1 need more further elaboration (why are they a strength?) 

- replace "author" to surname 

- mention the research methodology used by the author (visual analysis or study? did they mention their methodology in the paper?) 

- cite year by the author's surname 

- for looking up papers: try "graphic design & visual narrative", "graphic design & story telling"

Week 9

- film reviews and critiques are secondary data 

- describe the method of focus group interview from literature (cite) 

- feature the name of the specific participants (with their consent) 

- justified the age group of the focus group interview 

- visual analysis for RO1, focus group interview for RO1& 2 

- mentioned the specific films used in the focus group interview 

- prepare interview questions and example of visual analysis

 

Week 10

- list the guidelines of how the visual analysis will be carried out 

- showcase the pictures for readers to understand the context of how the book design set the tone of movie 

- elaborate on the historical background of the film, is the typeface design based on that period? - make sure to always convince the reader, and explain how it brings out visual narrative 

- the box itself is important or the graphic design is important?: maybe the box can be a sense of surprise and expectation 

- emphasise the way of how the box is design 

- needs literature support to explain the packaging/typography/colours 

- do research on the coat of arms (only well-known family have coat of arms) 

- always bring in visual research to elaborate the analysis, such as the actual jail writing, other box designs 

- need to finish at least 1 research method by week 11

Week 11

- number the interview questions 

- prepare a google form for recruiting participants for the focus group 

- have a variant in participants: ask if they have watched at least one of the films or not, are they related to design field

Week 12

- report: each project come after with a reflection, lastly follow by a final reflection for the whole module 

- if slow in speaking, just pause the screen for 2 seconds to show research problem, objectives, and questions 

- include references in the presentation slides (if have any citations) (slide)

research method: 

- just add another point for the justification, it also can be done in speech (slide) 

data collection: 

- only take the key elements from the visual analysis, can include some pictures 

- survey data can be done by making an infographic, don't put every question in it, just the key one

Week 14
- point form for justification 

- visual analysis: make point forms of the aspect of the analysis in each element, then make a conclusion for all 

- survey: emphasize the size of the percentage, and shorten the text

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REFLECTION

Experience: Throughout the module, I have had the opportunity to delve into the process of conducting research based on my interested field - graphic design in film, which has made me gain insights into it by applying methodologies - visual analysis and quantitative survey. This hands-on experience has not only enhanced my understanding of research practices but has also provided me with practical skills that I can apply in my future paper.

Observations: One of the key observations I made during this module is the importance of a well-structured approach to research. From defining a research problem, objectives, and questions to reading key literature, and selecting appropriate methodologies, every step in the research process plays a crucial role in obtaining meaningful and reliable results. I learned that by carefully planning and organizing my research, I can navigate through the complex challenges that often arise during the process.

Findings: I learned that the combination of qualitative and quantitative methods can provide a comprehensive understanding of research problems. By having mixed methods, I was able to analyse the graphic elements in films while also validating my findings from visual analysis through the statistical responses from the survey. I also learned the key point of conducting research - time management. Each of the stages in doing research requires a significant amount of time and attention to detail. Without proper time management, it is very easy to become overwhelmed and fall behind schedule, affecting the quality of the research outcome.