Continues with next week blog.

Last week I talked about inquires. This week I'm going discuss Secondary research.

Secondary research is information that others have gathered through primary research. I use secondary research by going online or reading books to see what other people have discovered, researched and written.

Obviously design is what I mostly search about because this is my subject and it's something that interest me.

Ms Mamo explained that when secondary researching, we must use words that are straight to the point meaning that we write the right words. She suggested that before doing secondary research, we brainstorm and think of the topics that we want to tackle. Think about the design problem, and highlight the main topics. By using keywords you can focus on the information you need and it will save time. 

Online sources offer a variety of information.   The question is, "Is it good information?"  

When reading through some online sources, you'll notice that the information its not up to standard and can't always be relied upon.  Sometimes they are not even written in proper English. So in that case Ms Mamo explained that we need to look at who wrote the information; look at his background; other types of information that could support his research; If it has been updated; and comments from other readers.

What I normally do is look at other relative information and if everything connects then it's a valid information. 

Then there are case studies. Case studies - when you look into other peoples work.
I look at how other designers have tackled the same design issues and most of the time case studies help me to be inspired.

Ma Mamo  said that don't just look at their design and say it's good but observe, see what they have done differently and how they planned their circulation according to the user. The case studied has to be viewed within the context. The social and physical setting. 

I use secondary research a lot. Although Ms Mamo taught me a lot on how to improve my secondary research. 

Reference:

BA Spatial Design - Yr2: Design Principles and Methods - 2016/2017,  Design Methods. [pdf] Antoinette Mamo . Available at: file:///C:/Users/racfal/Downloads/3._Design_Methods_STAGE_1_-_Discover.pdf> [Accessed 4 December 2016].