Performance Evaluation: Identifying Barriers and Enablers for Landscape Architecture Practice

Chen, Guanyu; Bowring, Jacky; Davis, Shannon

doi:10.3390/architecture1020011

Cited by 3 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 37 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…As this study is primarily concerned with the level of knowledge abstraction in practice, landscape architecture practitioners are the best sources of information. Therefore, members of the American Society of Landscape Architecture (ASLA), the largest professional association for landscape architecture in North America (15,155 members), were chosen for this study [38]. In order to keep the survey more manageable, this study only randomly sampled a small portion, about 5%, of the selected population, who were all full and honorary members with valid email addresses listed in the ASLA online member directory.…”

Section: Data Collection and Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Landscape Architecture Professional Knowledge Abstraction: Accessing, Applying and Disseminating

Qiu,

Cong,

Opiniano

et al. 2023

Land

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Rigorous abstract knowledge, such as academic knowledge, is vital to a profession’s resilience against other modern professional competition. In the field of landscape architecture, a growing number of concerns about a lack of rigorous knowledge have been observed, which may jeopardise the jurisdiction of its professional practice. A study was conducted that collected behaviours and attitudes from various members of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) regarding how they accessed, disseminated, and applied knowledge in practice. Their responses concerning the knowledge were analysed by dividing and ranking the options according to the degree of knowledge abstraction. Knowledge abstraction refers to theories and commonplace best practices that are established within a profession through shared knowledge, experience, and research. The results showed that (1) most practitioners tended to access new knowledge through tacit experience, which is indicative of a lower level of abstraction in their practice; (2) design decisions were based less on higher and rigorously abstracted knowledge such as research findings and, in circumstances where it was deployed in the design process, such knowledge was seldom used to guide design independently; (3) the majority of practitioners rarely share knowledge through high-abstracted publications; and (4) compared with accessing relatively diverse levels of knowledge abstraction, practitioners were less resourceful in knowledge application and even less in dissemination. The knowledge acquired, used and circulated in the workplace of landscape architects—as indicated by this survey—is still not comprehensively abstracted to a rigorous level, which may provide an insight into the concerns of practitioners regarding this profession’s breadth of knowledge and jurisdiction.

show abstract

Section: Data Collection and Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Landscape Architecture Professional Knowledge Abstraction: Accessing, Applying and Disseminating

Qiu,

Cong,

Opiniano

et al. 2023

Land

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This type of evaluation is always carried out after the built work has been occupied or been in service to allow the users to fully experience the design and for potential problems to become apparent [3]. As argued by numerous scholars and practitioners [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15], evaluating the actual performance of implemented designs is considered highly important for the healthy growth of the environmental design discipline and to help the relevant professions to better understand how their design solutions work in reality and, therefore, contribute to a better-performing built environment. There is a considerable number of studies published around POE since the late 1960s.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Terminology, Definitions, and Forms of Post-Occupancy Evaluation (POE) in Landscape Architecture

Chen

Bowring

Davis

2023

Land

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

While the concept of Post-Occupancy Evaluation (POE) is widely applied in landscape architecture and other relevant fields, the term POE is not well-defined. By reviewing and analysing a representative set of POE definitions collected from existing academic and grey literature using content analysis methods, this study aims to enhance understanding of the breadth of the concept and its relevant practices. Our research found that the concept of POE was developed in architecture in the 1970s and subsequently adopted in landscape architecture in the 1980s. With the growth of the field in architecture and its adaptation to landscape architecture, the scope of POE was significantly expanded over recent decades, and with this growth, there have been considerable divergences in definitions and understandings of how to carry out POE. A range of different evaluation objects and four evaluation models were identified by this study. By surveying the conceptual terrain of POE, our research establishes the need for practitioners to be aware of the breadth of the concept and the potential ambiguity surrounding what is meant by the approach. Consequently, practitioners need to be specific and explicit about their understanding of POE. The findings also demonstrate how interdisciplinary differences appear to have been overlooked when adapting POE from one discipline to another. We, therefore, argue that it is crucial to keep shaping and trimming the concept to support the adaption of POE processes into different disciplinary domains.

show abstract

“…The LAF study analysed the methodology documents of the 148 CSI cases and developed a guidebook, in which a wide range of performance indicators and evaluation methods were documented to help future evaluators plan and conduct their evaluations. The CSI initiative is the most influential research programme in the field of landscape performance evaluation and was a representative example of one of the two most viable evaluation mechanisms identified by Chen et al [30].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As reported by Chen, Bowring, and Davis [30], apart from the evaluation cases that were undertaken under the CSI's benefits-oriented evaluation mechanism, there are also a wide range of cases that were evaluated under a different mechanism, adopting a financially and institutionally independent approach. However, there is no similar study mapping the methodological terrain of the cases conducted beyond the CSI mechanism.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, it would also be useful to carry out a study similar to the "terrain mapping" study commissioned by the LAF but investigate a larger variety of evaluation cases. Based on a previous study undertaken by Chen, Bowring, and Davis [30], which analysed the funding sources and evaluator types of a representative set of New Zealand evaluation cases, this research further investigated the same set of cases to examine how "success" is defined and evaluated in practice.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

How Is “Success” Defined and Evaluated in Landscape Architecture—A Collective Case Study of Landscape Architecture Performance Evaluation Approaches in New Zealand

Chen,

Bowring,

Davis

2023

Sustainability

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This study examines landscape performance evaluation practices in New Zealand by analysing a representative set of evaluation cases using a “sequential” case study approach. The aim is to map the methodological terrain and understand how “success” is defined and assessed in these evaluations. This study identifies different evaluation models, including goal, satisfaction, and norm models, and explores the evaluation methods employed. This study also reveals a correlation between funding sources and evaluation outcomes, with stakeholder-funded evaluations more likely to yield positive results. These findings highlight the need for comprehensive evaluations that adopt appropriate and sufficient models and the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration for robust evaluation practices.

show abstract

Performance Evaluation: Identifying Barriers and Enablers for Landscape Architecture Practice

Cited by 3 publications

References 37 publications

Landscape Architecture Professional Knowledge Abstraction: Accessing, Applying and Disseminating

Landscape Architecture Professional Knowledge Abstraction: Accessing, Applying and Disseminating

Exploring the Terminology, Definitions, and Forms of Post-Occupancy Evaluation (POE) in Landscape Architecture

How Is “Success” Defined and Evaluated in Landscape Architecture—A Collective Case Study of Landscape Architecture Performance Evaluation Approaches in New Zealand

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About