This review aims to synthesize the current knowledge on the conventional design studio context. This is a narrative literature review based on articles published within the last ten years, while 60 articles were selected for the literature review following a rigorous filtration process. The final articles were selected by applying inclusion and exclusion criteria to the initially selected articles. This review has synthesized the current knowledge on design studio contexts and will review the conventional design studio context, design studio practices that take place within design studios and use of digital tools. The main aim of this study is to broaden the understanding of design studio contexts and to comprehend the types of design studio contexts available in architectural studies. Furthermore, it discusses the digital tools used in design studio practices in the last 10 years. A thematic analysis was conducted in reviewing the articles. It is to be noted that no research has been carried out except one on generating design studio context outside the conventional design studio set-up. This study aims to identify the potential research possibilities of context generated design studios to engage in design studies.

The architectural design process is a unique process that has its inherent phases with specific activities within. Exploring and identifying the real design process which occurs within the conventional design studio is the key focus of this study. This study was carried out by adopting systematic literature review methodology. The most relevant articles for the review were identified by applying an inclusion and exclusion criteria based on a rubric developed to find answers to the research questions developed. For the literature review, 50 articles were selected by eliminating the non-related and non-suitable articles based on the rubric developed. The data was analysed by the content analysis based on the Grounded Theory. Grounded Theory was applied to generate a theory based on the data or findings. The results have given data to draw a Design Process model which is specific for architectural design studio practice. It is evident that the lack of integrating the intended user in the design process has impacted the solutions. Furthermore, many scholars have discussed the architectural design process, but there is a significant gap in discussing the involvement of users and context during the design process.