{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/117654"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/117654","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"Understanding the role of generative design in undergraduate students' design thinking","abstract":"Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2024-12-01","abstract_html":"Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2024-12-01","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Barnaby-Brown, Alexandra Danielle"],"institution":"University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"M.S.","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Systems & Entrepreneurial Engr","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Goldstein, Molly H"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2022,"date_issued":"2022-12","date_published":"2022-12","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:56Z","subjects":["Generative Design","Cad","Design Education","Engineering Education"],"languages":["en","eng"],"rights":["Copyright 2022 Alexandra Barnaby-Brown"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/2142/117654","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Goldstein, Molly H"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Barnaby-Brown, Alexandra Danielle"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2022-12","2022-12-08"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text","Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Systems & Entrepreneurial Engr"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.S."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Generative Design","Cad","Design Education","Engineering Education"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en","eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2022 Alexandra Barnaby-Brown"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/117654"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2024-12-01","The student, Alexandra Barnaby-Brown, accepted the attached license on 2022-12-07 at 14:45.","The student, Alexandra Barnaby-Brown, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2022-12-07 at 15:05.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2022-12-08 at 13:36.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #18599 on 2023-04-12 at 08:11:11","Background: Computer-aided design (CAD) is a standard design tool used in engineering practice and by students. CAD has become increasingly analytic and inventive in incorporating AI approaches to design with generative design to help expand designers’ divergent thinking. However, because generative design technologies are new, we know very little about generative design thinking in students. Purpose: The purpose of this research is threefold: explore how students engage in the design process when using generative design software, understand the relationship between students’ divergent and convergent thinking abilities, and investigate in what ways students’ divergent and convergent abilities are related to their generative design understanding. Design: This study was set in an introductory graphics and design course where student designers used Fusion 360. Data collected included a generative design CAD module and both divergent and convergent psychological tests. Results: The results suggest that students approach generative design decision-making similarly to how beginning designers approach standard decision-making and that students’ divergent and convergent thinking is not related to their generative design thinking. Conclusions: This study shows that new computational tools might present the same challenges to beginning designers as conventional tools. Instructors should be aware of informed design practices, should continue to encourage students to grow into informed designers by educating them on design practices without technology and, by introducing them to new technology such as AI-driven generative design."]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Understanding the role of generative design in undergraduate students' design thinking"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Goldstein, Molly H"],"dc:creator":["Barnaby-Brown, Alexandra Danielle"],"dc:date":["2022-12","2022-12-08"],"dc:description":["Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2024-12-01","The student, Alexandra Barnaby-Brown, accepted the attached license on 2022-12-07 at 14:45.","The student, Alexandra Barnaby-Brown, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2022-12-07 at 15:05.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2022-12-08 at 13:36.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #18599 on 2023-04-12 at 08:11:11","Background: Computer-aided design (CAD) is a standard design tool used in engineering practice and by students. CAD has become increasingly analytic and inventive in incorporating AI approaches to design with generative design to help expand designers’ divergent thinking. However, because generative design technologies are new, we know very little about generative design thinking in students. Purpose: The purpose of this research is threefold: explore how students engage in the design process when using generative design software, understand the relationship between students’ divergent and convergent thinking abilities, and investigate in what ways students’ divergent and convergent abilities are related to their generative design understanding. Design: This study was set in an introductory graphics and design course where student designers used Fusion 360. Data collected included a generative design CAD module and both divergent and convergent psychological tests. Results: The results suggest that students approach generative design decision-making similarly to how beginning designers approach standard decision-making and that students’ divergent and convergent thinking is not related to their generative design thinking. Conclusions: This study shows that new computational tools might present the same challenges to beginning designers as conventional tools. Instructors should be aware of informed design practices, should continue to encourage students to grow into informed designers by educating them on design practices without technology and, by introducing them to new technology such as AI-driven generative design."],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/117654"],"dc:language":["en","eng"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2022 Alexandra Barnaby-Brown"],"dc:subject":["Generative Design","Cad","Design Education","Engineering Education"],"dc:title":["Understanding the role of generative design in undergraduate students' design thinking"],"dc:type":["text","Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Systems & Entrepreneurial Engr"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.S."],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:56Z"}