Learning Styles of Interior Design Students as Assessed by the Gregorc Style Delineator

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the preferred learning style of undergraduate students majoring in interior design. The Gregorc Style Delineator, a self‐report instrument to determine learning style, was administered to 147 undergraduate interior design students enrolled in Foundation for Interior Design Education Research (FIDER) accredited programs located within the Southwest Region of the United States. To determine the dominant learning style of undergraduate interior design students, frequency distributions were compiled. Overall, the most important finding in this study was the diversity of learning styles among interior design students. Not only were all learning styles represented in the sample, but 49% of students exhibited dominance in more than one style—unlike the results of previous studies with non interior design students. The most common learning styles found among interior design students are a logical and hands‐on learning style, known as Concrete Sequential, and a combination of experimental, imaginative, and people‐oriented learning styles, known as Concrete Random/Abstract Random. Diversity in student learning styles supports the argument for the need for instructors to have a repertoire of teaching methods. Instructors should be knowledgeable in learning style theory, should know their own learning style, and should be able to teach using a variety of styles.

Engineering technology vs. engineering students: Differences in perception and understanding

“…The students were asked to use their first impressions of the words to guide their ranking. There are ten sets of words and, in a particular mediation channel, students could earn from 10 to 40 points [15].…”

Dominant Learning Styles of Interior Design Students in Generation Z

“…JOURNAL OF INTERIOR DESIGN they moved through the major. Interestingly, students in Watson and Thompson's (2001) study and Zollinger and Martinson's in 2010 were probably Millennials. The students in this study were Generation Z, but their dominant learning styles indicate a continuum more than an abrupt change from the preceding generation despite advances in technology.…”

“…Generation Z's oldest students are now college-aged, and there is a lack of research into the characteristics and pedagogical needs of this generation of learners. While Watson and Thompson (2001) and Zollinger and Martinson (2010) studied learning styles among interior design students using the GSD, these investigations are 11-20 years old. Much has changed since then, especially in terms of technology use.…”

“…The purpose of this study was to evaluate the preferred learning styles of interior design undergraduate students of Generation Z using a quantitative approach. As a follow-up to Watson and Thompson (2001), data were obtained using the self-reporting survey in the GSD to measure learning styles.…”

“…understanding of their own preferred learning styles may help increase confidence and develop more effective studying strategies (Watson & Thompson, 2001;Zollinger & Martinson, 2010).…”