Architecture Commons^™

Educational Design: Does The Design Of A Learning Environment Effect How A Student Learns?, Terrie Larsen

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

New 21^st Century classroom layouts have evolved from the studies of several educational researchers and their findings over the past century. In conjunction with universities across the world, researchers developed progressive outlooks of what the built environment can offer to the newest generation of learners. Their studies have coined several terms such as Active Learning Classrooms (ALC), Student Centered Active Learning Environment for Undergraduate Programs (SCALE-UP) and Technology Enabled Active Learning (TEAL). These classroom models represent higher learning studies for more effective 21^st century learning environments. Some of the models include a specific style of table and number …

Tiny Houses In Metropolitan Areas Of Nebraska: Seasonal Or Permanent Living Environments, Michele L. Hybner

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

This study is designed to determine if tiny houses offer a viable seasonal and/or permanent living environment for Nebraska residents. Two objectives are used to assess the viability of tiny housing in this Midwestern state. The first analyzes the economics (demand, supply, and cost) of tiny housing in metropolitan areas of Nebraska. The second identifies barriers to occupancy of tiny houses in the state. The results of this research are significant because tiny housing presents a means to address the state’s need for more affordable housing options available to Nebraska residents. At the time of this study, 11.4% of Nebraska’s …

Designing Single-Family Residences: A Study Of The Positive Impact Of Interior Design In Creating New Home Value, Shawn M. Falcone

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

This study seeks to demonstrate that interior designers should be included as primary stakeholders in the home construction market. The market demand for new single-family homes in America is a relative constant. The primary stake and role that land developers, architects, draftsman, home builders, bankers, appraisers, real estate agents, and buyers have in the home construction market is clear. What is less clear is the role in value an interior designer has in the home construction market. This thesis examines the impact designers have on home value when their expertise is utilized in space planning (i.e.: layout, function, room utilization, …

Best Practices For Urban Coliving Communities, Rachel Osborne

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

Coliving, a new typology of housing design, has recently been gaining in popularity. Coliving is a form of rental housing that seeks to create community among its residents by providing features such as extensive shared spaces and community managers paired with typically small, furnished private spaces. Little architectural or interior design research is available to describe this emerging typology, and no best-practices or guiding principles exist to aid designers in ­making informed decisions when designing or evaluating coliving spaces.

This thesis uses a mixed-methods approach to understand the composition of existing coliving facilities as well as the motivations and preferences …

Challenging The Norm Of Minimums: A Case Study Of Ada Design Standards On The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln Campus, Emily Drummy

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

In the United States, over 30 million people have difficulties climbing stairs and require the use of a walker, cane, or wheelchair to move around (United States Census Bureau, 2012). All people interact with the built environment around them, including the some thirty million who deal with physical difficulties. While some can navigate the space around them easily, others have more difficulty due to certain barriers. Often, interior environments are designed with the able bodied in mind, not accommodating properly for the disabled even in the most basic of ways. Despite the introduction of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) …

Greening Restaurant Design: A Study Of The Implementation Of Leed Certification In Restaurant Design, Shelly Schmidt

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

With a significant amount of interest in sustainability and green design in the commercial industry, this thesis examined the effects of the implementation of LEED certification specifically within the built environment of restaurants. Being one of the largest energy consumers and waste producers in the commercial retail industry, restaurant stakeholders have a social responsibility to safeguard the environment from such detriments imposed upon by the daily operations of their business. Yet, few owners have chosen to implement green practices or sustainable features into the design of their restaurant.

Case study comparisons of six restaurants, three LEED certified and three non-LEED …

Conceptual Thinking: How To Quantify Meaning In Projects And Processes Through Structured Non-Linear Thinking., Marijn Van Der Poll

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

Things have meaning. Your job, your smartphone, even your insurance has another layer of meaning than its intended reason for existence. Products have become complex combinations of applications and features so small, that their shape no longer characterizes them. As people we have evolved into empowered consumers looking for purpose in our lives and in the things we buy. Advertising discovered the power of meaning more than a century ago. Since then, what has proven difficult is to quantify meaning. The skills we are taught in our educational system and the processes we apply in business fall short of identifying …

Facilitating Change In The Housing Industry Toward Universal Design, Brittnie Miller

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

The intent of this thesis is to provide an introductory guide for interior designers, homeowners, builders, and those interested in the concepts of universal design. It is tailored to the target markets of interior design and those within the ho using industry, but leaves an open conversation to create a relationship between the housing industry and homeowners.

Looking at the history of universal design and how it has evolved through the years will give readers a beginning point to start a comparison of the residential design standards and universal design measurements. Using the comparison, case studies will be reviewed and …

The Classroom Paradigm: Design In A Technology-Driven Era, Candace Thompson

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

Classroom design has an effect on a number of students’ behaviors and performance. Architects and facilities directors are frequently faced with design decisions that impact students and do not always have the resources to help support their decision making. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how classroom design in education can facilitate students’ learning and engagement in an ever-changing technological age. Is the traditional classroom environment the most effective set up? To explore this issue, the author will provide literature review and design examples to help guide the reader through ways to accommodate these changing needs—both the physical …

The Impact Of Green Design On The Emotional Health Of Patients In Children's Healthcare Facilities, Kimberly M. Riege

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

With a significant amount of research focusing on the design of healthcare facilities, this thesis examined the relationship between specific aspects of green design and their effect on the emotional health and wellbeing of patients in children's healthcare facilities. Case studies of two children's clinics in Omaha, Nebraska were conducted to study the effects a connection to the natural world and the acoustic environment had on patients' emotional state. One case study site was a newly built children's clinic that incorporated a connection to nature with a focus on the acoustic environment while the other was an adaptive reuse building …

The Effectiveness Of Distance Delivery Studios In Interior Design Education, Tracy A. Fichera

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

Technology has affected the way in which we live and work and many Interior Design programs have transitioned at least a portion of their curriculum to an online format; however, for many reasons most have been hesitant to convert the studio. One concern many faculty have is that distance education cannot facilitate the same environment or provide the individualized attention that face-to-face studio offers. In this study, the effectiveness of distance delivery studio courses in interior design education will be explored to find out if they can be as successful as face-to-face studio courses. Standards set forth by the Council …

An Evidence Based Design Guide For Interior Designers, Bethany Friedow

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

The intent of this thesis is to provide an introductory guide for interior designers wishing to conduct research on various aspects of the built environment. It is tailored toward designers working in the healthcare field, but the concepts discussed can be translated into any realm of interior design or architecture.

Research is important to the profession and should play a role in every design project, particularly in the healthcare market. Credible design research will continue to elevate the profession and strengthen the credibility of design practitioners and firms who can successfully conduct a research program. Among the key areas of …

A Choreographed Experience: The Role Of Technology In Restaurant Design, Clarissa J. Volker

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

The 21st century dining experience has emerged with a focus on the engagement of the consumer. This project challenges and defines the role of technology within restaurant design bound by emerging concepts of interactive architecture. Through precedent research and the exploration of programatic space, a final schematic design visualizes an interactive hub to engage the everyday customer.

Adviser: Tom Allisma

Exploratory Case Study: How The Inclusion Of Nature In The Design Of Learning Environments Affects Learning Among Children, Cheryl Knodel

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

The theoretical framework of Stephen R. Kellert linking nature and the built environment was used as the basis for this research. This case study research was conducted to describe the effect nature had on learning among children 3 to 6 years of age attending two north central Florida Montessori learning environments. Methods were examined by which this phenomenon might be studied in more detail in order to: (a) provide verification of the independent and dependent variables, (b) establish the empirical measure of learning outcomes, and (c) provide the refinement of the variable learning outcomes as influenced by nature.

A qualitative …

Teaching Evidence-Based Design To The Beginning Design Student: Educator Perceptions About Incorporating Research In Beginning Design Education, Deborah Rushen Dunlap

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

Educators’ perceptions influence academic protocols regarding the level at which evidence-based design is introduced to design students. Evidence-based design, a research methodology based on quantitative and qualitative inquiry that informs design decisions, permeated healthcare design to the point that the two are almost synonymous (Hamilton & Watkins, 2009; Nussbaumer, 2009). As this research based approach spreads throughout the profession, multiple specialty areas in architecture and interior design adopt evidence-based design into their methodologies (Hamilton & Watkins, 2009). These “developments in design practice now impinge directly upon education” (Zuo, Leonard, & MaloneBeach, 2010, p. 269). Teaching evidence-based design to design students …

Defining Excellence In Healthcare Design: The Role Of Personal Qualities, Roger J. Vitello

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

Healthcare design has been recognized as a legitimate area of specialization[1], a field. Expertise in the healthcare design and building process is needed. Where and how future healthcare design practitioners will be educated remains a challenge. While the evolution of research-based design for health facilities has grown since the 1980s little is known about how healthcare designers should be educated. [2] An understanding of personal qualities a graduating student is expected to possess is important to their education. [3] Knowledge about the qualities that determine excellence in healthcare design practice is sparse. By understanding which qualities have been …

Sustainable Environments And Pro-Environmental Behavior, Jessica L. Kirk

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

This thesis examines the ability of the sustainably designed building to alter occupant behaviors using LEED for New Construction and Major Renovation, Green Building Rating System™ as a standard of measure. A cross sectional survey compares the pro-environmental behaviors, intentions, environmental knowledge, and pro-environmental orientation of occupants working in a traditionally designed building and occupants working in a LEED-NC certified building located on the University of Nebraska - Lincoln Campus. While there is a visible increase in the pro-environmental variables for occupants working in the sustainable environment, data analysis indicates that these differences are not statistically significant for any of …

Ritsy: Flat-Pack Furniture For The Urban Nomad, Emily D. Fleming

Interior Design Program: Theses and Other Student Work

Today modern technology has allowed us the choice of vast geographical locations for living and working. About 1 in 6 Americans move each year. The highest mobility rates are found for young adults, ages 20 to 24 who were associated with over one third of the entire moving population, in a single year. (Hansen, 2008) The Americans of today enduring this behavior pattern are termed Urban Nomads. The ideals of such a person and behavior rest in the ability to live simply for the sake of mobility. The combination of our economy today, the exceedingly important environmental issues that arise, …