Research Skills

While methods describe a structured procedure or technique applied to learning about specific aspects of a subject, a methodology describes a framework of theories, principles, and methods. It describes your approach to gaining knowledge, the methods you use to collect and analyse data and why you chose them.

For most disciplines, specific methodological frameworks do exist. As design is at the intersection of many disciplines, you will most likely adapt an existing framework or will develop your own, depending on your subject of research. The most important questions for the choice of any methodological framework or method are always: does is make sense in the context of my research, does is deliver reliable and relevant information, and does it support the argument?

Most of the methodologies and methods mentioned here derive from the social sciences. Quantitative and qualitative methods of social research have become increasingly differentiated and refined over the past 100 years. We can only provide a rough overview here. It should also be mentioned that in the context of the research thesis, we do not expect you to implement complex methods from the social sciences 1:1, but rather that you understand the basic principles of the methods and use them in a meaningful and effective way for your work.

We also do not expect you to understand and use all of these approaches, but rather see it as a repository from which you can choose.

Choosing and using methods and methodologies in design research
Methods and methodologies depend partially on your research topic and subject, but also on what you want to achieve:

• If you want for instance, to understand a certain situation, you might do interviews and surveys, you might observe existing phenomena, objects, situations, and practices, and map the results.
• If you want to explore the potential of a new tool, material or process, you might ideate or co-ideate artifacts and practices and test them until you come to relevant conclusions.
• If you want to challenge existing assumptions, you might involve discourse analysis, a method that examines how language forms our biases and assumptions about the world, or you might use speculative prototyping to counter those assumptions.

Research methodologies
In the following, you find a few research approaches, some of which are methodologies, particularly relevant for design research. This list is not exhaustive, and it is not necessary to rely exclusively on one of these approaches, as they often complement each other or overlap.

• Evidence-based Design
  An investigation into existing practices based on qualitative and/or quantitative evidence gathered in your respective domain. This form of research involves what is called «primary research», as you go directly to the original sources of information.
  
  
• Hermeneutic Questioning
  Hermeneutics – rather a method than a methodology – which refers to how we interpret texts and human experience. In design for example this can entail a well-argued critique of existing aesthetic phenomena, artifacts, and practices to understand better how and why something is built, constructed, or designed in a specific way.
  
  
• Design Ethnography
  Design ethnography derives from ethnography, the study of cultures, and is a methodology that examines people within their human-designed everyday environment to better understand their practices, motivations and interactions.
  
  
• Grounded Theory (GT)
  While research often starts with a theory or a hypothesis about the subject of investigation, Grounded Theory is an open methodology in which the understanding of social phenomena or processes is gradually derived from data. In an iterative process new data is constantly produced, analysed and compared to earlier data until no new insights emerge.
  
  
• Actors Network Theory (ANT)
  Most approaches to understanding society put humans at the centre. ANT takes a different approach by claiming that all beings, objects, tools, artefacts and even ideas, are actors or actants with some form of agency and that together those actants form interdependent networks. Based on this assumption, ANT examines the relationship of actants and their dependencies in order to understand how they together develop cultural and social realities.
  
  
• Action Research
  While sociological studies traditionally would try to understand and reflect upon existing social practices and relationships, action research was developed as an iterative process in which not only theories but also solutions to social problems are developed – often collaboratively with those affected –, reflected upon and then further developed.
  
  
• Practice Research/Practice-based Research
  In the arts, practice-based research relates to the fact that artefacts do embody certain knowledge, for example, about their making, their usage and their meaning and that new knowledge can be produced through acts of design. In recent years, the term “practice research” has been introduced to include all disciplines where creative or professional practice instigates change, such as social care, health care or education.

Primary Research
Primary research describes first-hand knowledge acquisition. This means, for example, developing and conducting your own experiments, observing, analysing existing phenomena, objects, situations and practices, or talking to people about their experiences. The raw knowledge gained in primary research – before you analyse it to gain deeper insights – is called data. In research, we distinguish between two main types of data: quantitative and qualitative data. Your personal method-mix can contain both kinds of data.

• Quantitative Data
  Quantitative data refers to information based on measurements. For example, temperature changes or the use of certain modes of transport can be measured over a specific period of time. Surveys also often produce quantitative data by making people’s behaviour statistically measurable and comparable.
  
  
• Qualitative Data
  If you want to delve deeper into people’s lives and experiences and learn more about their motivations and emotions or about certain social milieus and practices, methods such as interviews and/or close observations are recommended. Interviews are generally more open than surveys, for example and go more into detail and therefore often yield unexpected insights that can be particularly important for design problems.
  
  

Relevance of data in primary research
A key question when collecting data is that of relevance. How large does my sample need to be, i.e. how many people do I need to survey or interview? For whom are the findings relevant, and to what extent can I generalise them?

When collecting quantitative data, e.g. in a survey, the relevance of these data is not arbitrary but can be calculated mathematically. More precisely, the probability that certain data is relevant is calculated based on various factors such as target populations, number of responses, etc. Therefore, if your research depends largely on surveys, we recommend a basic knowledge of statistics. Conducting surveys without statistical expertise is appropriate when, for example, at the start of a project, you want to obtain approximate information and trends regarding certain attitudes and practices.

Since collecting qualitative data takes a great deal of time, the samples are automatically much smaller. And then, of course, the question arises as to the relevance and extent to which findings from 5 or perhaps 10 interviews can be generalised. However, qualitative research is based on the insight that the last century has seen a significant diversification of environments, ways of life and subcultures, so that rather than making broad generalisations, the aim is to gain a deeper understanding of specific living conditions and practices. When selecting interviewees, it is important to develop a strategy. For example, are you looking for extreme cases or a cross-section of different perspectives? What role does gender or other diversity criteria play?

Primary research methods:
Here a list of methods, which again is not exhaustive:

• Interviews
  A very common form of interview in the social sciences is the so called semi-structured guided interview. The aim is to get a deeper understanding of what motivates people, how they experience their life and how they interact. You prepare a guideline with the topics and aspects you want to investigate. In order for the interviewee to give a lively account of their experience, you ask open questions. Closed questions can be answered with yes and no, while open questions ask for personal experiences, feelings, and opinions. To keep the narration flowing, try not to interrupt the interviewee too often and don’t mind the order of questions in your guideline. Just tick off the topics that have been covered and ask for those questions that haven’t been answered yet – and keep the conversation open enough to lead you into topics you haven’t planned for or anticipated, this often proves to be very productive.
  
  
• Expert Interviews
  It often makes sense to talk not only to people who are directly affected by a particular issue, but also to experts who understand the context, the practical implications and/or the theoretical principles behind it. Be aware that experts often have limited time and that you have a clear thematic focus.
  
  
• Focus Groups
  A focus group can be very helpful, especially when you are just getting started with a topic. You organise a meeting with a manageable number of people and moderate a discussion on the questions and issues that interest you. With focus groups, it is important to pay attention to group dynamics and ensure that everyone has a chance to speak. It can be helpful to establish ground rules at the beginning. Focus groups are good for a more general orientation but they often don’t yield deep insights into the lives of individuals, and they are not necessarily representative of wider populations.
  
  
• Surveys
  Surveys are a means of collecting mainly quantitative data for example about social practices, personal motivations, preferences and routines, interactions with artefacts and other humans and many other things. Doing a relevant survey is not banal. Surveys produce statistical data and the relevance of these data is not arbitrary but can be calculated mathematically.
  
  
• Workshops
  Workshops can help to try out and discuss prototypes or to develop concepts and solutions to problems together. Workshops should be well planned, and particularly schedules should be checked for feasibility. Don’t forget to include breaks. It is helpful to conduct a workshop in pairs so that certain tasks, such as documentation, can be delegated.
  
  
• Observations
  Knowledge about certain practices, cultures and behaviours can also be gained through observation. Next to defining the actual area or subject of observation, it is important to be clear about your role. Are you observing covert or overt? How much of your intentions do you reveal to participants? Are you simply an observer, or to what extent are you participating, and how does your role affect the data? Do you have a very specific systematic that needs to be maintained, or do you rather want to keep an open approach?
  Data in this context can be notes, but also images and sounds, or other traces emerging from the activity being observed.
  
  
• User Testing
  User testing is a specific, mostly very structured approach towards observation in which users or potential users are observed during interactions with objects, interfaces and services. As a rule of thumb, five participants are enough to find about 50 to 80% of usability problems, depending on the expertise of the users (Nielsen, 1992).
  
  
• Diary Studies
  Diary studies are a method of self-observation that helps to improve understanding of the context and environment of a specific stakeholder group. For this purpose, participants log their interactions and experiences over a specific time in a structured way. The diary log can be anything from a booklet to an app to a device that automatically logs certain functions or activities. Insofar, diary studies can yield both quantitative and qualitative data.
  
  

Cultural Probes
A specific form of diary studies is the cultural probe or design probe. Its role is to gather inspirational rather than analytical data. That is why it is often a carefully designed package that encourages participants to gather their experiences in different ways. It may contain coloured pencils, a disposable camera, a box for collecting objects and so on, but also brief instructions on how to use it. Cultural probes not only deliver insights but can also instigate a dialogue with participants.

After collecting the data, you need to analyse it: what are the main issues, what are the most important findings, and what will help me move forward? Similar to the methods of data collection, there are very sophisticated methods for analysing data in social research. Instead of following these guidelines to the letter, we recommend a heuristic approach here as well, i.e. ways that lead to useful results with reasonable effort.

• Transcribing audio-data
  You likely have a lot of audio data that you need to transcribe before you can analyse it. There are now many transcription tools that work reliably. Tools that can distinguish between different speakers are often proprietary, such as the online tools happyscribe.com or Amberscript. Töggl.ch offers fairly reliable transcriptions from Swiss German. MAXQDA is a high-end transcription and coding tool (see below) that is available through the HSLU software kiosk.
  
  
• Bias
  Any form of data analysis is an interpretation in which the interpreter’s point of view always plays a role. To limit personal bias when analysing qualitative data, it’s important to reflect on your own assumptions, stay aware of how your background may influence interpretation. You might document this through a brief positionality statement or research diary. Also seek evidence that challenges your views and stay transparent about your role so the findings reflect participants’ perspectives rather than your own.
  
  
• Summaries
  In social sciences, data can be analysed according to content or to structure. We recommend staying with the content. The easiest way to do this is to write summaries of the data, such as interviews. To keep the summary as concise as possible, it can be helpful to clarify at the outset what questions you want to ask of the material. What do you want to know? What is relevant in the context of your work?

• Coding
  Thematic coding is a systematic way of approaching qualitative primary data, such as an interview. Rather than looking at the narrative as such, you search for specific concepts that appear in the text. A user for instance, might say that she was not motivated anymore to dive deeper into an application. From the way she says this, the concept behind it might be “frustration”. So you mark this passage with the code ‘frustration’ and, as you continue your analysis, pay attention to whether this code appears in other places with other words. In this way, you code the entire text. It often makes sense to go through the text several times in this manner. This does not need to be done chronologically. The aim is to identify around 4 or 5 central concepts. If there are several interviews on the same topic, the codes should be applied to the entire data set. At the end you write a short summary regarding these main concepts but also interesting outliers. Certain concepts can also be defined before the analysis. However, you should remain open to the possibility that these original concepts may turn out to be less relevant than anticipated. Coding can also be a way to help minimise bias as it is systematic, transparent, and tied to the data rather than to your assumptions.
  While you can do thematic coding with a marker and a pen, in the social sciences rather complex tools such as MAXQDA support advanced coding. You can access it via the HSLU software kiosk.
  
  
• Affinity Mapping
  Affinity mapping is related to coding but less strict. It is used to organise large amounts of qualitative data and is often applied in user experience design. Observations, quotes, drawings are posted on a board and then grouped, based on similarity, allowing patterns and themes to emerge visually. You can do this individually, but also collaboratively.
  
  
• Collaborative Data Interpretation
  A collaborative approach to data analysis is helpful in gaining additional perspectives and reducing the significance of individual biases, but it can also be more fun. We therefore recommend data interpretation sessions as described in affinity mapping. Or the coding of Interviews can be done individually by different people and then discussed in a joint session to determine the meaning of the codes/concepts

Just as important as conducting your own first-hand research is familiarising yourself with existing research on your topics, both the existing empirical work as well as theories that try to make sense out of phenomena. This is also referred to as desktop research, as you mostly sift through various media such as books, papers, databases, films and others. The term “secondary” does not mean that this form of research is secondary or comes second after primary research. Secondary research should be started before you begin your own empirical investigations. It gives you an overview of what has already been researched and helps to identify the gaps. Here are a few recommendations:

• Gaining an overview of a new topic
  Because design is at the intersection of many disciplines, you may need to learn about basic theories or key findings from other fields. Student-oriented introductions can help, as they summarize important authors and concept areas such as media studies, feminist theory, game studies and many others. The more specific you define the field, the better you can narrow your search. For example, if you are interested in decision-making, psychology is too broad—behavioural economics is a more suitable starting point.
  
  
• Strategic reading
  Strategic reading is a purposeful way to extract relevant insights quickly from secondary sources. Start by clarifying your research question so you know what you’re looking for. Scan abstracts, introductions, conclusions, and headings to judge relevance, then read only the sections that serve your aims. Take focused notes that connect directly to your project, and question how each source fits into wider debates. In essence, strategic reading means choosing what to read, how deeply, and why.
  
  
• Literature Review
  In the course of composing your thesis, engaging with existing literature is crucial. It provides a foundation for your reasoning and allows you to position your findings as consistent with, advancing, or opposing established research. The literature review is like a map of your research area, describing not only relevant texts and practices, but also the gaps that open up for new research.

Additional literature:

Flaherty, K. (2024). Diary Studies: Understanding Long-Term User Behavior and Experiences. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/diary-studies/

Flick, U. (2019). An Introduction to Qualitative Research. SAGE.

Gaver, B., Dunne, T., & Pacenti, E. (1999). Design: Cultural probes. Interactions, 6(1), 21–29. https://doi.org/10.1145/291224.291235

Muratovski, G. (2015). Research for Designers. SAGE Publications Ltd.

Nielsen, J. (1992). Finding Usability Problems Through Heuristic Evaluation. Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 373–380. https://doi.org/10.1145/142750.142834

Portigal, S. (2013). Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights (1st edn). Rosenfeld Media.

Travers, A. (2013). A Pocket Guide for Interviewing for Research. Five Simple Steps. www.andrewtravers.com/book/

Method boxes and other resources:

Gamestorming:
Game-based set of co-creation tools

IDEO designkit Methods
A step-by-step guide consisting of various methods for practice-based design research

Stanford d.school Tools:
A collections of tools & other resources regarding essential design skills (including research)

Systemic Design Toolkit:
Systemic Design Toolkit helps you co-create interventions to tackle organisational and societal complexity.

td-net toolbox
Methods and tools for co-producing knowledge

UX Research Cheat Sheet by Norman Nielsen Group
A list of methods and activities for UX research including instructions on which to use when.

Finding Inspiration for a Research Topic
Oftentimes students don´t feel ready to start writing because they have not yet found their research topic, yet. Where can we find inspiration for a topic? In the book Real World Research, Colin Robson (2002) says that it it helps to start from our personal experience and to “start from where we are.” Our personal experiences, identity, experiences, and background play a central role in the research process. It may have started with a personal experience in life that raised a question. Sometimes these happenings or prickly moments in life are signs of a larger social problem.

You might consider your own biography and asking yourself questions about what brought you here to study design? What intellectual, creative, or professional models have most profoundly impacted your development? What do you want to study, what would you like to learn, to enable you to follow those intellectual, creative, and professional interests? Your first writing project ought to start this process of reflection.

Inspiration can also come from a class, a presentation, or even research itself. There might be perceived holes in literature. You might have direct access to a really interesting NGO who is interesting in collaborating with a designer. It may be that you know someone who is active in raising awareness to a larger social or environmental issue that you would like to work with. These are all good starting points.

Choosing a Good Topic
Once you´ve identified a research domain, it´s important to also ask yourself questions regarding feasibility and scale within the frame of two semesters, depending on whether you are part or full time. Will you do your field research here in Lucerne, or somewhere else? Can you gain access to the stakeholders and experts that are relevant to your research? Are there particular barriers or accessibility issues? Carrying out a research and design project with stakeholders and human subjects comes with responsibilities and complex decisions. You will need to think through and weigh these options carefully.

Some other measures to weigh your topic against are:

• relevance: its perceived relevance to the academic department(s) in which you are studying;
• supervision: the availability of tutors/supervisors within the department(s) who are interested in the topic;
• interest: your existing knowledge of that topic and your motivation to learn more about it;
• competence: your likely ability to employ the proposed methods of data gathering and data analysis;
• scale: the feasibility of completing the study within the time and resources available.
• risks: the potential for harm of research subjects, appropriate time and financial resources, or other unforeseen challenges with the topic.

Orienting Your Work within the Research Domain
For your exposé, it is recommended that you create an annotated bibliography. At this earlier stage, you will curate a list of works for background or further reading, which includes some descriptive notes on why it is relevant to your topic. By the time you have started your research thesis, you have now have somewhat of a grasp of the literature you have culled together. Writing a literature review is a process of making sense of that literature and finding your own position within it. The purpose of the review is to demonstrate your familiarity with the field. In doing so, you may also acknowledge different contributions to your domain, while you are also encouraged to state your responses to them – both positive and negative (Gray & Malins, p. 37). You´ll want to make sure that your review works for your own positioning and argument, of course.

Some of the readings we come across are difficult or the use of language and prose is unfamiliar. Learning to evaluate your readings critically means asking different questions of the readings. Do you agree with the author´s views? Why or why not? How does all this relate to other literature on this topic? What are the major points raised by the author? Does the article present data or is it purely theoretical? What else has the author written? Do these complement/this text? Writing a reading response (perhaps in your reflective journaling practice) can help remind you why and how a reading can be integrated into your research thesis.

Writing as a Process
Writing a thesis is a long non-linear process of reading, writing, notetaking, drafting, and revisions. You will need to commit to the process of starting early. Often times graduate students are exploring a topic for the first time, and it takes time to find one´s voice and position within a topic. Establish a trusted group of faculty, advisors, and peers to discuss your work and provide feedback on your topic as well as your drafts. 

Everyone´s process of writing and reading is unique, and there are many resources and tools on the internet to support your workflow of reading, notetaking, writing. Managing your busy schedules and beginning to build a writing practice is a necessity. Think of writing as a way of chronicling your journey in your masters degree. Build some dedicated time for quiet studying and reading and reflective writing, daily.

Carole Gray and Julian Malins argue that artists and designers should start a Reflective Journal. They say that the reflective journal serves as an “off-loading device” and to take stock, evaluate, and deposit ideas during your busy graduate experience. In it, you might begin chronicle your activities, summarize your thoughts on an interesting conference you attended, or archive and comment on an artist you are inspired by. Eric Hayot (2014) recommends that those wanting to start a good writing practice ought to begin by writing 30 minutes a day and writing every day. He also argues for mornings over writing in the evening. Starting with small achievable writing goals, and doing this daily, or weekly, is a good start to building good study habits.

Language and style
The written part of the thesis may be submitted in either English or German. Think about the potential readers of your thesis beyond your advisors—family, friends, or potential employers. Reading your thesis should be as easy and enjoyable as possible. This refers to layout, sentence structure, and style.

A common misperception is that academic writing is overcomplicated, dense, and impersonal. However, if you ask any reader of academic work, the comment you often hear about more positive theses are, “that was interesting!” This implies there are many creative ways in which we can make a topic engaging, convincing, and aesthetically beautiful. We ought to do so in a way that also emphasizes professionalism and clarity. Academic writing does not mean you have to write overcomplicated sentences. Short and easy to understand sentences will do.

Academic writing is, however, more formal and objective. Writing more objectively means that your tone is neutral and impartial. In academic writing, avoiding the use of personal pronouns “I,” “we,” or “you” means that the writer maintains a level of distance between themselves and the content. Instead of writing “I believe that,” or in my opinion,” the objective writer would present the information without inserting themselves into the narrative. For example, “According to the study to Gray´s study in 1988…” or “Studies indicate that.” This point of view is the third person point of view (POV), which is recommended for your thesis. However, there are specific sections where first person POV, and the use of “I” is appropriate.

First person POV can also be appropriately in your thesis particularly in the following areas: motivations of the research, approaches and methodology. In these sections of the thesis, it is very common to use the pronouns “I” or “my” when discussing the research activities. For example, “I conducted 12 interviews and two focus groups;” or “my main objective in conducting the survey was to test my assumptions about X.” For more information on the use of first person pronouns, see the APA style guide.

Subjectivity refers to the presence of personal opinions, feelings, and biases in writing. Objective writing opens up the space for critical thinking—presenting different and oftentimes opposing views about a select topic. You are writing to lay down the facts and evidence through the use of existing evidence from secondary research (existing studies and literature) as well as your own primary research (original studies, workshops, activities in your thesis).

Academic writing is not simply conforming to one style of writing. Typically academic writing is a combination of different styles of essay writing. Expository (seeks to inform or expose), argumentative writing (convinces or persuades through providing evidence), analytical (breaks down larger concepts to understand relationship between constituent parts), or narrative/reflective writing (is more personal and reflected). You will use reflective writing in your Research Thesis II, which is intended to stimulate your learning by asking you to reflect upon what you learned in your overall MA thesis project. This handbook also links to great examples of the Thesis II.

Structure and Flow
Thesis projects are vastly different, and no two theses are the same. However, the requirements of the thesis are clearly outlined here; and the main content might include:

• List of definitions (how you define key concepts in your research)
• Definition of problem space, the specific context (specific sites, stakeholders, jurisdictions) along with what you are not exploring.
• Literature review and state of the art review,
• Approach: positionality/assumptions; methodology, discussion of research activities and the formation of partnerships or positions during the research.
• Data analysis and outcomes
  • (e.g., summary of findings, assessment of the approach, discussion of contributions to knowledge, suggestions for future research directions).
• Development & assessment of prototypes;
  • Validation of results (test and verify outcomes);
• Critical discussion & reflections

Sometimes it helps to begin with an outline of the thesis. Look at several of the best practice examples to inform decisions how to structure your table of contents and thesis, and have your drafts reviewed by your advisors and coaches, as necessary.

Readers have limited attention spans and there are some important aids to assist readers navigate your texts. Especially with longer texts, pay attention to transitions and the interlinking of chapters. Summarise at the end of each main chapter. What have you done and what have you learned? Introduce every main chapter. What will you do in this chapter and how might this follow up from the recent chapter?

Reminding your reader what they have just read and what they are about to read is signposting. In longer texts, it is important to let the reader to be a sort of guide along critical moments of a text, as ideas and activities change in your content. Paragraphs ought to also only follow one main idea or thought. When you start a new idea, then start a new paragraph. A good rule is to keep paragraphs no longer than half a page. Make sure that your paragraphs connect to one another. Try to develop a continuing argument throughout the thesis.

Once chapters are written consider additional ways in which you might synthesize your material further. Are there sections that are much longer than the others? Make sure that there is a nice balance in length of each chapter/section. There ought to be a nice balance, so the reader does not get lost, or forget where they are in a longer text. Sometimes the use of subheaders can help.

Pay attention to transitions between ideas, chapters, sections, and when you are moving into a different idea. Signposting and the use of transition words and phrases can to improve the readers orientation within your text.

Once your draft has been written, consider additional ways in which you might synthesize your material further. Are there sections that are much longer than the others? Make sure that there is a nice balance in length of each chapter/section. There ought to be a nice balance, so the reader does not get lost, or forget where they are in a longer text. Sometimes the use of subheaders can help. Having someone who is not familiar with your topic as a reviewer is a good strategy to check for clarity and comprehensibility.

Peer Feedback and Critique
As your thesis writing develops, do ask peers and faculty for constructive feedback on your work and its legibility and make sure to build in extra time for reviews. Has your topic and approaches to methods been written in a way that seems logical, and presented in a way that can be understood? What are strategies to help communicate your project in a more succinct manner? You will have ample possibilities to seek critique and feedback. Be sure to build in extra time for feedback and comments on your final written work.

Finding the Right References
The metaphor is often used that in research, you are joining a scholarly conversation when you engage in academic writing. Finding relevant literature (secondary research) for your topic is very important. You´ll need to understand which disciplinary perspectives are most useful in your research. Ask your network (peers, faculty, or the librarian) to identify core relevant readings. You will also need to spend time filtering out readings that are less relevant. This means learning to skim texts and to read differently. For example, with journal articles you can get a sense of the article from the abstract. With books and book chapters, you can also get a sense of a book by skimming its contents, and noting down important ideas that you are interested in. It is helpful to jump to quickly jotting down the main idea of a book or chapter without reading it in its entirety. Take a look at Crispin Thurlow´s video “Finding the Right Stuff: A Quick Guide to More Effective and Efficient Academic Reading” which offersome useful reading techniques.

Adding relevant relevant sources to your citation manager; i.e. Zotero will help you track which references are relevant. The notes function works well to summarize the main idea behind a particular reading. Building good notetaking and archiving practices will benefit you in the end. The way we take notes, make lists, and our everyday transcribing of things is a social practice.

If you are struggling to find the right literature, be sure to ask for recommendations and reading lists from HSLU´s knowledgeable faculty or pay a visit to your local librarian. You may always use AI as a starting point for suggestions, but remember that AI can sometimes hallucinate, and may not be reliable. Be sure to find the original sources on your own, to avoid this issue.

Citations and references
It is best practice in scholarship to name all the sources that you refer to in your work. Academic citation and referencing involve two main aspects: the referencing of the source in the body of text and a reference list at the end of the text in which all the sources are listed. All sources need to be mentioned including the images you are using. For the exposé, the research thesis and the reflection of the design project, only the APA style as it is defined by the American Psychological Association may be used. APA style involves the «authordate» format for citations in the copy text which means that the author is referenced directly in the copy text using name and year of publication. The APA website has numerous resources and guides all students should review.

Use direct quotes rather sparingly and only when you think the original wording is very significant. Otherwise paraphrase as often as possible and develop your own voice.

Below you will find a few examples of how to cite and reference. You can find many more examples and cases on the APA website.

Paraphrased intext citation
In the following example the original source has been paraphrased. The name of the author, the date and the pages are mentioned at the end in brackets:

The avantgarde of the early 20th century, among them the visual poets of various isms was a heavily influential inspiration to the first generation of graphic designers (Drucker, 1994, pp. 240).

Citation of a direct quote in the text:
Direct quotes are cited similarly. In the below case the author’s name is part of the actual sentence, so only the year of publication is set in brackets:

Kirschenbaum (2000) refers to his work as «postalphabetic» while the title of Blackwell’s (2000) Carson retrospective proclaims «the end of print».

Citations with and without page numbers:
When you refer to a specific idea mentioned in a text, you also mention the page(s) as shown in the first example above. If you refer to the general idea of a book you do not mention the page as shown in the following example:
As Charles Darwin (1859) pointed out, evolution is the main driver of the development of species.

Reference list
At the end of the text, all sources are referenced in alphabetical order.
Here an example of how to format the reference of a single-authored book in the reference list:

Illich, I.; Sanders, B. (1989). ABC: the alphabetization of the popular mind. Penguin Books.

Referencing a chapter of a book:
Liestol, G. (1994). Wittgenstein, Genette and the reader’s narrative in hypertext. In G. P. Landow (ed), Hyper/Text/Theory (pp. 87–120). The University Press.

Referencing of a web source:
Kirschenbaum, M.G. (2000). The other end of print: David Carson, graphic design, and the aesthetics of media. MIT Communications Forum. http://web.mit.edu/commforum/pa-pers/kirsch.html.

Gaining knowledge about the world we live in is a collaborative endeavor over generations and centuries. However, building on the work of others comes with some responsibilities. Just as you want credit for your work, you should give credit to others as well. Therefore, in an academic context, it is important to make explicit what others have contributed to your work. In the section “How to write”, you will find instructions of how to properly reference sources you draw from to avoid plagiarism.

Plagiarism – using someone else’s work without giving proper reference to it – is a serious violation of the rules in an academic context. We will draw samples of MA theses now and then to check them for cases of plagiarism.

Avoiding plagiarism is a central point of academic integrity. According to the Information Literacy Toolkit of the HSLU, academic integrity is based on these four principles:

• Reliability in terms of ensuring the quality, transparency and traceability of the research process and its results
• Honesty in the development, implementation and communication of research in a fair and unbiased manner
• Respect for other researchers, students, society and the environment
• Accountability for research throughout the entire research process

Links:

To find out more about this topic have a look at the following texts:

• Guideline regarding Plagiarism (Available through MyCampus)
• Plagiarism Checker: You can check your own text for unintended plagiarism by using a plagiarism checker. Grammarly for instance, which we recommend for spell- and grammar-checking, provides one: https://www.grammarly.com/plagiarism-checker
• Information literacy toolkit – academic integrity
• Reglement zur wissenschaftlichen Integrität und zur guten wissenschaftlichen Praxis der Hochschule Luzern (German only)
  English Synopsis via ChatGPT: The Regulations on Scientific Integrity and Good Scientific Practice at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU) ensure that all teaching and research are conducted honestly, transparently, and responsibly. They emphasize quality, originality, and accuracy over quantity, require clear documentation of research methods and data, and define fair authorship. Misconduct—such as plagiarism, falsifying data, or misusing authorship—is strictly prohibited and investigated through a formal, confidential process that protects both the accused and the whistleblower.

On effective reading and writing

Bolker, J. 1998 Getting Started in Writing your PhD in 15 minutes a day. Via Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/writingyourdisse00bolk.

Thurlow, C. (2020) Finding the Right Stuff: A Quick Guide to More Effective and Efficient Academic Reading (Video), https://www.crispinthurlow.net/resources/

Hayot, E. (2014). The elements of academic style: Writing for the humanities. Columbia University Press.

On Lists, Notes, and Everyday Inscriptions
https://mediacommons.org/tne/cluster/notes-lists-and-everyday-inscriptions

On Notetaking Practices
https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/taking-notes-while-reading/

About starting your own writing practice
https://patthomson.net/2019/09/23/starting-the-phd-building-a-writing–practice/

Evaluating Sources
Purdue University Online Writing Lab

On Academic Conventions and Writing Style

Cayley, R. Explorations of Style, a blog about academic writing.

Dietrichs, I. (2018) Academic Writing in a Swiss Context. Hochschule Luzern

Sword, H. (2012). Stylish academic writing. Cambridge, Mass. : Harvard University Press, 2012.

On Bias-Free and Inclusive Language

Bias Free Language https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/bias-free-language

Inclusive Language Guide https://www.apa.org/about/apa/equity-diversity-inclusion/language-guidelines

On Positionality and Reflective Practice

Rodriguez Schon, V.,and Celi, M. (2023) Pursuing positionality in design, in De Sainz Molestina, D., Galluzzo, L., Rizzo, F., Spallazzo, D. (eds.), IASDR 2023: Life-Changing Design, 9-13 October, Milan, Italy. https://doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2023.371

Willemien Visser. Schön: Design as a reflective practice. Collection, 2010, Art + Design & Psychology, 2, pp.21-25. ⟨inria-00604634⟩

Citing and Reference Lists

https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/citations

https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references

Here are some personal recommendations for digital presentations. Please use it as a checklist for the presentations ahead.

Introduce yourself and your key idea – succinctly and clearly!

• Your title slide should include: your name, project title/subtitle, MA program, HSLU logo, date
• Name the people who helped you: add the names of your thesis advisors on the title page and/or the Thank you/credits slide at the end.
• Be inclusive in your thanks: list all people who contributed to your work – from giving you substantial advice, helped you in illustrating, designing, prototyping. Giving credit inclusively indicates generosity, honesty, and good listening and collaboration skills.
• Add page numbers.

Please choose the appropriate presentation style for the right moment:

• WOW us right from the start. Capture our attention with a clear, compelling and concise introduction to your key idea and what positive impact it will have. Continue in this spirit throughout: Wow us when you want to surprise us, set the mood, or get our attention.
• SHOW your process briefly, and only to the extent necessary to prove your point or take us on your journey. Give us a gracious experience of well-designed, intuitive and self-evident functionalities, showing us that you’ve thought thoroughly about it.
• FLOW – immerse us in time and space. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1992) describes it as a ‘state of effortless absorption in a particular activity’.

Target your content strategy to your audience: Yes, your professors must listen. But think about how they, and others you present to in the professional world, will have seen many ideas, and sat through many presentations, with very busy schedules. Then ask yourself how you can capture and hold their attention, and not lose it by providing too much detail or jargon. To that end:

• Design your message: be concise, impactful, and consistent with the evocative power of your graphics.
• Be brief: only present additional content if it is essential to increase awareness. Provide supplemental content in your appendix, not in the main presentation. Then show it to us only if needed when questions emerge.
• Keep texts short, clear and active. Phrases can sometimes be more effective than full sentences. If you use sentences, limit commas and subordinate clauses. Use active verbs. Be direct – and precise.
• Use semantic breaks: keep semantic phrases together. Avoid hyphenation whenever possible.
• Be authoritative: People rely upon your visual language for direction. Instructions should display confidence and knowledge. Eliminate wordiness, and choose the right words.
• Avoid acronyms and jargon whenever possible as they confuse and lose the audience. If you must use them, introduce them through storytelling; explain briefly why they are fascinating and important to your presentation. This way, you can make your presentation appealing to a wider audience, and make those who didn’t know the acronym or jargon feel that you’ve given them a personal invitation into this specialized world. If they already knew the acronym, they’ll see how you can appeal to non-experts.
• Use context-appropriate date formats: DD Month YYYY (e.g., 20 May 2023). For intervals, use: DD-DD Month YYYY (e.g., 19-20 May 2023).

Images are your best friends. They tell stories, prove your points and keep the audience awake.

• Have you tried to tell your story only in images? What is missing? What is gained? This thought experiment will reveal ways in which you can bring your ideas to life.
• Use your own images. Avoid image banks, most of these images are staged or feel generic. They undermine your research effort and the premise that your presentation is distinctive or special.
• Info visualizations help us to compare facts and position ourselves in a process. If it’s too much to read or too big, explore trimming your words or zooming in.
• Think about whether a video could help or hurt your presentation and, if you use one, what tone or approach would help. Well edited videos can tell a story quickly and vividly, engage and provide context, and show your idea in action. But videos can sometimes seem to interrupt your flow, or feel too promotional and pushy rather than explanatory and interactive, and lose the personal connection and momentum you’ve been building with your audience. If you decide to use a video, keep it short – max 1.5 min.
• Hire (if needed) an illustrator, photographer, video maker to help you and credit them appropriately.

For an MA, you must adhere to basic academic standards:

• Present your knowledge in the form of a coherent, clear line of argument.
• Ensure that the methods used to collect data (qualitative and/or quantitative) are clear to the reader.
• Show awareness of any potential ethical concerns regarding the research design or specific methods.
• Provide source references for all figures.
• Direct and indirect quotations on individual screens must also be accompanied by source references.
• Include a final page with a bibliography of the most important references at the end of the presentation.

Present your content to the expected interaction patterns of your audience:

• Show only necessary information and text.
• Convey the most crucial information in the shortest amount of text.
• BUT if your presentation will be referred to or read later, add just enough content to make it self-explanatory w/o your voice-over (reading is faster than audio or video).
• Please explore the difference of reading (or send) decks vs. presentation decks? Often have to do both kinds.

Tailor your design choices to the audience and medium:

• Choose your visual language (typefaces, images, info viz etc.) reflecting your communicative intent and audiences needs/capabilities.
• Address readability and legibility: (Readability is the arrangement of fonts and words to make written content flow in a simple, easy-to-read manner. Legibility refers to how easily distinguishable the letters in a typesetting or font are from one another. Source)

Guarantee legibility on screen:

• Select highly legible fonts (large x-height, distinctive letterforms, old-style numerals for data comparisons etc…).
• Use big enough type. Minimum text size 18 pt for body text, could be smaller for captions, sources…
• Apply dynamic type sizes to differentiate importance, guide reading rhythm and guide audience attention.
• Utilize different type treatments for different pieces of information (for example, italics for quotes…).
• Appropriate line length increases readability (depending on medium – max 72 characters).
• Enhance contrast and color to support meaning.
• Typefaces with an easy distinction between certain letters and numbers are considered to be better for legibility as they can sometimes look similar; differentiation between i, I, l; 1 and better distinction between lower case a and o.
• Avoid using uppercase: CAPITAL letters read 30% slower than mixed-case letters and are 40% less memorable. They also tend to come across as strident or “yelling in text.”

Double-check your spelling and grammar

• Be kind to your audiences: please spellcheck, always.
• For example, Grammarly.com also provides editorial advice based on your intended communication style in English.

Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse

• Practice your presentation, ideally in front of others and check the timing.
• Plan your presentation with an extra minute to spare!
  Don’t overrun your time.
• Make eye contact with your audience! Check out how/if they are following you.
• Be prepared. Embrace difficult questions.

Last words: Rules for successful presentations (John Thackara)

• Rehearse your introductory sentence
• Write the last sentence of pres – be explicit!!!
• 1h of prep for every minute of pres
• Tell me what you find, what you got there,
  not what you found in going there > insights not process

Surprise, challenge, wow us!

How to work with AI tools in an academic context:
Some of you may ask: «Am I allowed to use AI software such as ChatGPT when writing my research thesis?» Yes, such tools are allowed. However, for the sake of academic integrity it is important to always keep in mind, that Artificial intelligence such as ChatGPT, which is based on Large Language Models (LLMs), generates text based on probabilities and has no understanding of the logic of an argument or the meaningfulness of a text. The algorithm is generally unconcerned with factuality or validity, as long as it is semantically plausible. It regularly «hallucinates» and outputs nonsense that just sounds about right. Any output that AI generates should therefore be reviewed extremely critically for its logic, coherence and correctness.

For details regarding the usage of AI in the context of the Lucerne School of Art Design Film please check the following text:
KI-Tools verwenden und zitieren. Richtlinien für Studierende (2024). Hochschule Luzern Design Film Kunst (Available on myCampus)
. The text is only available in German, and the title translates as Using and citing AI tools. Guidelines for students.

Transcription with AI:

The automatic transcription of interviews using AI is problematic because AI tools are connected to a cloud service, which means there is a risk that data protection will not be guaranteed. Proprietary tools such as f4x from audiotranskription.de, töggl.ch or the MAXQDA analysis software offer good quality and data protection. MAXQDA, for example, is available via the HSLU Software Kiosk. An alternative is the free software noScribe, which can be installed on a local computer. However, the automatic transcription of a one-hour text might take several hours.

Support in working with AI in research:

Epic ChatGPT Prompts for Research
Dr Andrew Stapleton shares his experience about using AI tools in research in this and many more videos.

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