AGGREGATIVE EXPERTISE: A GLOBAL HISTORY OF HOUSING, INFORMATION SCIENCE, AND THE DEPROFESSIONALIZATION OF THE ARCHITECT, 1973-82

In the 1970s, between the oil crisis (1973) and the debt crisis (1982), housing became the primary strategy pushed by international agencies and economists looking to promote national development and manage rural-urban migration. Despite what seemed to be the perfect outlet for architectural expertise, architects were largely excluded from international debates on housing, such as at the United Nations Habitat Conference (1976). At the same time, by 1978, a quarter of the world's architects were unemployed. This dissertation argues that the architect's loss of relevancy in housing was caused by a shift in scientific and technical expertise, in general. Through archival research on three projects funded by national governments (Mexico, Argentina, and Spain), I demonstrate that expertise related to housing shifted from professional architects to aggregate experts working in consultancy groups, governmental research institutions, and international development aid agencies. Rather than emphasizing episodes that explain how architects were excluded from the production of housing, this dissertation looks at exceptions when some architects recognized their loss of agency and tried to resolve the situation by creatively engaging in the newly emerging information systems. In three interrelated sections, I highlight three systems projects where architects took on managerial and bureaucratic roles and hired their own research teams filled with sociologists, computer scientists, and data analysts.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph. D., Architecture

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctor of Philosophy

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Architecture

Grantor

Cornell University

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Moynihan, Michael

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Campanella, Thomas
• Gonzalez Pendas, Maria
• Craib, Raymond

• Architecture
• Deprofessionalization
• Housing
• Information
• Systems
• Technology

Language dc:language.iso

en

DOI

https://doi.org/10.7298/dzz4-t088

Dc Identifier Other

ProQuest Submission ID: 14187
ProQuest Publication ID: 31146481

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:ecommons.cornell.edu:1813/115970