Examining the Effect of Design Stimuli on Perception of Peer Contribution in Design Teams

Corey James Kado; Elisabeth Kames

Download Paper | Permalink

Conference: 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Portland, Oregon
Publication Date: June 23, 2024
Start Date: June 23, 2024
End Date: July 12, 2024
Conference Session: Design in Engineering Education Division (DEED) - Research Investigations in the Context of Design Education
Tagged Division: Design in Engineering Education Division (DEED)
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/47375

Request a correction

Paper Authors

biography

Corey James Kado Florida Polytechnic University

visit author page

He is a senior-level student at Florida Polytechnic University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. He is
a Student Research Assistant under Dr. Elisabeth Kames, focusing on Design Neurocognition.

visit author page

biography

Elisabeth Kames Florida Polytechnic University orcid.org/0000-0002-5455-4100

visit author page

Elisabeth Kames is an Assistant Professor at Florida Polytechnic University. Her focus is on design and manufacturing, including engineering education within the mechanical engineering department. Her research focuses the impact of motivation on performance and persistence in mechanical engineering, design cognition and neurocognition, and manufacturing training in design courses. Elisabeth is an active member of ASEE, ASME, Tau Beta Pi, and Order of the Engineer.

visit author page

Download Paper | Permalink

Abstract

Universities are incorporating more team-based learning (TBL) opportunities throughout their curricula to prepare students for the engineering profession, as observed with courses such as cornerstone and capstone design. Prior research has indicated the importance of design courses in engineering curriculum as it provides students with critical thinking skills in a conceptual setting alongside other students. However, the engineering profession is not as seamless as academic design experiences would suggest, as there are constantly changing requirements, resources, and budgets – what we coin “design volatility”. Students do not typically experience design volatility, as most of their courses are well organized with a fixed syllabus. This paper examines the impact of design volatility on perception of individual and peer contribution to a semester-long, sophomore level design project. We investigate design volatility occurrences through the lens of team and peer contribution to determine how students can function on a team during design changes, as we hypothesize design volatility will impact student perception of team contribution toward a project. To investigate this phenomenon, students were asked to complete two web-based Comprehensive Assessment of Team Member Effectiveness (CATME) Peer Evaluation surveys to assess themselves and their teammate with respect to their contribution to the project and their satisfaction with the team interaction. The initial CATME survey was administered approximately 60% of the way through the semester, when the student teams had finalized their project designs and near project completion. The students were informed shortly thereafter of a design change: the primary requirement of the project had changed, requiring the teams to reassess existing designs. At the end of the project, students were administered a second CATME survey to determine if the design volatility had an impact on the team dynamics. The results of both surveys were statistically compared for significant differences. The results of the study suggest that student perception of their peer’s contribution was unchanged following the design change. However, the students’ perception of their individual contribution changed, specifically regarding their contribution to the teamwork and their expectation of quality in the final product.

Citation
Format

Kado, C. J., & Kames, E. (2024, June), Examining the Effect of Design Stimuli on Perception of Peer Contribution in Design Teams Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. https://peer.asee.org/47375

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Universities are incorporating more team-based learning (TBL) opportunities throughout their curricula to prepare students for the engineering profession, as observed with courses such as cornerstone and capstone design. Prior research has indicated the importance of design courses in engineering curriculum as it provides students with critical thinking skills in a conceptual setting alongside other students. However, the engineering profession is not as seamless as academic design experiences would suggest, as there are constantly changing requirements, resources, and budgets – what we coin “design volatility”. Students do not typically experience design volatility, as most of their courses are well organized with a fixed syllabus. This paper examines the impact of design volatility on perception of individual and peer contribution to a semester-long, sophomore level design project. We investigate design volatility occurrences through the lens of team and peer contribution to determine how students can function on a team during design changes, as we hypothesize design volatility will impact student perception of team contribution toward a project. 
To investigate this phenomenon, students were asked to complete two web-based Comprehensive Assessment of Team Member Effectiveness (CATME) Peer Evaluation surveys to assess themselves and their teammate with respect to their contribution to the project and their satisfaction with the team interaction. The initial CATME survey was administered approximately 60% of the way through the semester, when the student teams had finalized their project designs and near project completion. The students were informed shortly thereafter of a design change: the primary requirement of the project had changed, requiring the teams to reassess existing designs. At the end of the project, students were administered a second CATME survey to determine if the design volatility had an impact on the team dynamics. The results of both surveys were statistically compared for significant differences. 
The results of the study suggest that student perception of their peer’s contribution was unchanged following the design change. However, the students’ perception of their individual contribution changed, specifically regarding their contribution to the teamwork and their expectation of quality in the final product. 


AU  - Corey James Kado
AU  - Elisabeth Kames
CY  - Portland, Oregon
DA  - 2024/06/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Examining the Effect of Design Stimuli on Perception of Peer Contribution in Design Teams
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/47375
ER  -