ABSTRACT
By adopting an information-processing standpoint on expert so ware design, our aim was to examine how aspects of an overarching design goal motivate particular solution development strategies. Our contention, based on our previous research in various design domains, including electrical and electronic engineering (Ball et al., 1994), microelectronic engineering (Ball et al., 1997), and so ware engineering (Ormerod and Ball, 1993), was that the organization of solution development processes would be seen to be determined in important ways by the inherent complexity of the design requirements associated with the design goal. We further aimed to examine the possibility that complex design requirements impact on designers’ feelings of epistemic uncertainty as they attempt to deal with these requirements by generating and evaluating putative solution ideas. Our
14.7.2.2 Temporal Locus of the Addition of Low-, Intermediate-, and High-Complexity Requirements 237
14.7.2.3 Number of Segments Devoted to Addressing Low-, Intermediate-, and High-Complexity Requirements 239
14.7.2.4 Length of Individual Episodes Spent Dealing with Low-, Intermediate-, and High-Complexity Requirements 240
14.7.2.5 Relation between Simulation and Low-, Intermediate-, and High-Complexity Requirements 242
14.7.2.6 Role of Uncertainty in Mediating between Requirements and Solution Development Strategies 242
14.8 General Discussion 244 Acknowledgments 246 References 247
working hypothesis was, therefore, that designers’ perceptions concerning the complexity of requirements would be observed to fuel strategic shi s in the solution-search process, with such shi s potentially being mediated by feelings of uncertainty.
