Browsing by Author "Whitney, Bradley A."

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Complex Spatial Skills: The Link Between Visualization and Creativity
    Allen, April Diane (Virginia Tech, 2000-03-03)
    The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a correlation between spatial skills and creativity in interior design students. Participants were subjects who took a visualization assessment and created the 33 projects used in the study, and 11 judges, professional design experts who rated the projects. The sample of subjects was comprised of interior design students at a FIDER-accredited institution in southwest Virginia. The judges included interior design educators and interior design graduate students having previous practice experience. Subjects completed a pencil-and-paper Visualization Assessment consisting of 36 questions using two-dimensional and three-dimensional drawings (Isham, 1997). A percentage score for spatial skills was calculated for each subject based on the number of correct answers. Design projects created by the students were assessed by subjective ratings on three Dimensions of Judgment taken from the Consensual Technique for Creativity Assessment (Barnard, 1992; Amabile, 1982). The three dimensions used in this study included Appropriateness, Creativity, and Novelty. Ratings were collected in two judging sessions at a local site. Interjudge reliabilities exceeded the established criterion level (.70 or greater) on all three dimensions, with coefficients ranging from .729 to .866. Interjudge reliability for the Creativity dimension was .866, indicating a high level of agreement among judges on creativity. Intercorrelations among the dimensions indicated a high degree of association between the variables with Appropriateness and Novelty both significantly correlated with the Creativity dimension. Pearson product-moment correlation was used to determine if there was a significant correlation between visualization and creativity in interior design students. No significant correlation was found.
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    Conceptual designs for space planning at the Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History
    Gilboy, Elizabeth; Fisher, Terri; Grundy, Meghan; Whitney, Bradley A. (Virginia Tech. Community Design Assistance Center, 2007-05)
    The CDAC was hired by the DMFAH to improve the Museum's first floor rear entry hall and to improve the visitor experience between the first floor and the public spaces on the basement level.
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    The Effectiveness of Interior Design Students' Study Drawings in the Design Process
    Prillaman, Susan Carol (Virginia Tech, 2002-05-03)
    Visualization is an important part of the design process. The sketches that are created during the design process are the visible evidence of the visualization that occurs in the brain. The process of designing involves a conversation that occurs between the student and the sketches created during problem finding and problem solving in the design process. This conversation allows the student to progress through the design process manipulating both the drawn image on paper and the visualization that occurs in their mind until a fitting solution to the problem is found. This study sought a better understanding of this communication style and it's effect on designed final products. Two methods of analysis were utilized in this research. Quantitative analysis was used to measure the correlation between quality of sketching process and the quality of the final designed product. Then multiple case studies were examined to describe in detail the design process styles of three students. First the sketches that were created during the designing of a student project were counted and then evaluated for sketch creativity and sketch efficacy. The final design products were evaluated for project creativeness and project function. Significant positive statistical correlations between the variables were observed. In summary, the quality of sketches and visual thinking during the design process had a measurable positive effect on the final designed solution.
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    "The Virtual Grocery Store: A Proposal to Improve the Quality of Life for Retail Customers through a Virtual Environment"
    Choi, Katrina Jones (Virginia Tech, 2004-05-13)
    With the prevalence and integration of the Internet in our lives, online shopping has become a popular and convenient method of obtaining goods. However, there is an important experience that occurs between the customer and the product as well as the customer and the space in the actual, physical store which does not yet occur in the virtual store (Raijas, 2002). Customers' increased use of new technology and the Internet illustrates that an incredible growth potential exists in the electronic grocery store industry. Currently, electronic grocery stores have not taken advantage of key components of traditional grocery retailing practices or information technology (Raijas, 2002). Consequently, electronic grocery stores have not yet provided customers with significant benefits for choosing online grocery shopping as opposed to traditional grocery shopping in the actual store. This finding suggests that a better quality shopping experience could be provided for online grocery store customers through the marriage of the benefits of online grocery shopping with the benefits of traditional grocery shopping. This study presents a proposal of how to combine the benefits of shopping in an actual retail store with the benefits of shopping online.