Research Design and Field Studies

Level of Study

Master

Full-time/Part-time

Full-time

Teaching semester

Spring

Place of Instruction

Media City Bergen

Objectives and Content

The aim of the course is to give the students the theoretical, methodical and practical knowledge on how to carry out an individual or collaborative master project associated with media design and interaction design for the media.
The course focuses on research design and is organized as a series of workshops that together will lead to the development of a project description for the master project. The course will provide insights into approaches to innovation, software development and media design, and will deal with how to integrate innovation thinking and collaboration into the students¿ own master projects.
As part of the project development, the students gain experience with methods for conducting field studies related to their own projects. The students discuss ethnographic and sociological perspectives from media production research and Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), and carry out an ethnographically oriented field study that helps them understand the target groups for their project or user experience of similar products. As part of the course, students will also receive training in using observation labs.
The exam in the course is an individual project description. In those cases where the students wish to collaborate on a master's project, they provide one project description each that depicts how the different subprojects are connected.

Learning Outcomes

A student who has completed the course should have the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• Can write a clear project description and have the knowledge to choose relevant theories and methods in the planning of a practice-based research project within user-centered media and interaction design.

Skills

The student

• Can integrate ideas related to innovation, software development, and media design into a research and development project.
• Can use ethnographic methods in the critical evaluation and design of media technology, and for the assessment of user experience associated with a medium.
• Can perform advanced user studies in line with relevant ethical standards.
• Can obtain scientific literature related to specific issues and topics.

General competence

The student

• Can evaluate ethical, practical and methodological issues related to a specific research and development project.
• Can on his/her own or in conjunction with others, plan and carry out a research project based on a field study and present the empirical findings, and evaluate the ethical and socio-cultural implications of the project.

Required Previous Knowledge

MIX301

Credit Reduction due to Course Overlap

• INFOMEVI300 (10 ECTS)
• MEVI300 (10 ECTS)
• INFO300 (10 ECTS)

Access to the Course

Master's Programme in Media and Interaction Design

Teaching and learning methods

Seminars, workshops, and supervision, around 4-6 hours each week for 12-14 weeks.

Compulsory Assignments and Attendance

• Training in the use of observation labs.
• Give a written and an oral presentation of literature.
• Two submissions related to the fieldwork.
• Two submissions related to project description.
• Give feedback on the project description to a fellow student.

The compulsory requirements must be approved before the student can take the exam.
Approved compulsory requirements have no time limit.

Forms of Assessment

Project description (5000-7000 word)

Grading Scale

Pass/fail

Assessment Semester

Assessment in teaching semester.

Course Evaluation

The course is evaluated by the students every third year and by the course instructor each year.

Department

Department of Information and Media Studies