Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-8kt4b Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-27T12:16:54.876Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS IN ENGINEERING: SYSTEMIC DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EXPERTS AND NOVICES

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 June 2023

Senni Kirjavainen  and
Sine Celik
Senni Kirjavainen
Affiliation:
Aalto University
Sine Celik*
Affiliation:
Aalto University
*
Celik, Sine, Delft University of Technology, Netherlands, The, g.s.celik@tudelft.nl

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Engineering knowledge forms an essential part of our planetary fight against climate change. Traditionally, engineering curricula emphasizes the importance of technical knowledge and encourages to specialize in niche areas, where engineers develop themselves into experts. However, it is important to be able to reflect on complex societal challenges from a variety of perspectives to produce not only innovative, but also long-lasting and inclusive solutions for the greater good. This paper aims to understand the extent of systems thinking abilities of engineers by differentiating experts from novices. The study traces sustainability connections made by professional engineers and master's level engineering students when solving engineering design problems. This qualitative study highlights seven recurring themes that relate to the global sustainability discourse and describe a problem-centred approach through a real-life case that focuses on paper and pulp production, through a thematic analysis of 59 responses. The results portray system-level differences in how novice and expert engineers approach sustainability questions and how these differences shape their solution spaces.

Keywords

SustainabilitySocietal consequencesSocial responsibilitySystems thinkingExperts and novices
Type
Article
Information
Proceedings of the Design Society , Volume 3: ICED23 , July 2023 , pp. 1655 - 1664
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

References

Aguilar, F. (1967) “Scanning the business environment”. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Alzayed, M. A., Starkey, E. M., Ritter, S. C., Prabhu, R. (2022, August). “Am I Right? Investigating the Influence of Trait Empathy and Attitudes Towards Sustainability on the Accuracy of Concept Evaluations in Sustainable Design.” In International Design Engineering Technical Conferences and Computers and Information in Engineering Conference (Vol. 86236, p. V03BT03A007). American Society of Mechanical Engineers.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baumgartner, R. J., Ebner, D. (2010) “Corporate sustainability strategies: sustainability profiles and maturity levels” Sustain. Dev., Vol. 18, pp. 76–89Google Scholar
Björklund, T. A. (2013), “Initial mental representations of design problems: Differences between experts and novices”, Design Studies, Vol. 34 No. 2, pp. 135–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bolton, C., Miskioglu, E., Martin, K. M., Aaron, C., Carberry, A. R. (2021). “Practicing Engineers' Definition of Their Expertise: Emergent Themes and Frequency by Gender Identity and Role Change into Management.” ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition, Conference Proceedings.Google Scholar
Bourne, L. E. Jr, Kole, J. A., & Healy, A. F. (2014). Expertise: defined, described, explained. Frontiers in psychology, 5, 186. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00186CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Braun, V., and Clarke, V. (2006) “Using thematic analysis in psychology,” QualitativeResearch in Psychology, vol. 3, pp. 77–101.Google Scholar
Burgman, M., Carr, A.., Godden, L., Gregory, R., McBride, M., Flander, L., (2011) “Redefining expertise and improving ecological judgement.” Conser. Lett. 4: 81–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Celik, S., Kirjavainen, S., Björklund, T. A. (2020, June). “Educating Future Engineers: Student Perceptions of the Societal Linkages of Innovation Opportunities”. In 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access.Google Scholar
Chiu, M-H., Mamlok-Naman, R., Apotheker, J. (2019). “Identifying Systems Thinking Components in the School Science Curricular Standards of Four Countries” Journal of Chemical Education. Vol. 96 No.12.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gillespie, A. (2007) “PESTEL analysis of the macro-environment.” Foundations of Economics, Oxford University Press, USA.Google Scholar
Groen, G. J., Patel, V.L., (1985). Medical problem-solving - some questionable assumptions. Med Educ. Vol:19 (95–100).CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Handfield, R. B., Melnyk, S. A., Calantone, R. J., Curkovic, S. (2001). “Integrating environmental concerns into the design process: the gap between theory and practice”. IEEE transactions on Engineering Management, Vol. 48 No. 2, pp. 189–208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hayles, C. S., and Holdsworth, S. E., (2008) “Curriculum Change for Sustainability”, Journal for Education in the Built Environment, Vol. 3 No. 1, pp. 25–48, https://dx.doi.org/10.11120/jebe.2008.03010025CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Horn, J., and Masunaga, H. (2006) “A Merging Theory of Expertise and Intelligence” in The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance, Cambridge University Press, pp. 587–611.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Issa, T., Chang, V. (2010). “Sustainable business strategies and PESTEL framework,” GSTF International Journal on Computing, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 73–80.Google Scholar
Kouprie, M., and Visser, F. S. (2009). A framework for empathy in design: stepping into and out of the user's life. Journal of Engineering Design, vol. 20 no. 5, pp. 437–448.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lee, D., Hess, J.D. (2022), “Measuring corporate social responsibility: an evaluation of a new sustainable development goals index for Fortune 500 companies”, International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 10.1108/IJOA-12-2021-3082 Vol. 30 No. 7, pp. 137–154.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Luo, Y., Becker, K., Gero, J., Alarcon, I. V., and Lawanto, O. (2021) “Systems Thinking in Engineering Design: Differences in Expert vs. Novice”. International Journal of Engineering Education, Vol. 37 No. 5.Google Scholar
O'Byrne, D., Dripps, W. Nicholas, K.A. (2015). “Teaching and learning sustainability: An assessment of the curriculum content and structure of sustainability degree programs in higher education.” Sustain. Sci. Vol. 10, pp. 43–59. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-014-0251-yCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Purvis, B., Mao, Y., and Robinson, D. (2019) “Three pillars of sustainability: in search of conceptual origins” Sustainability science, Vol 14 No. 3, pp. 681–695.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scoones, I., Stirling, A., Abrol, D., Atela, J., Charli-Joseph, L., Eakin, H., … and Yang, L. (2020). “Transformations to sustainability: combining structural, systemic and enabling approaches”. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Vol. 42, pp. 65–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spence, A., Poortinga, W., and Pidgeon, N. (2012) “The psychological distance of climate change.” Risk Analysis: An International Journal, Vol. 32 No. 6, pp. 957–972.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sterling, S. (2004). “Higher education, sustainability, and the role of systemic learning.” In Higher education and the challenge of sustainability (pp. 49–70). Springer, Dordrecht.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Turner, A. (2015). “Generation Z: Technology and Social Interest.” The Journal of Individual Psychology. Vol. 71 No. 2, pp. 103–113. https://dx.doi.org/10.1353/jip.2015.0021.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Swanson, H. L., O'Connor, J. E., & Cooney, J. B. (1990). An Information Processing Analysis of Expert and Novice Teachers’ Problem Solving. American Educational Research Journal, 27(3), 533–556.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walton, D. (1997) “Appeal to expert opinion: arguments from authority.” Pennsylvania State University Press, Pennsylvania White, P. (2009), “Building a sustainability strategy into the business”, Corporate Governance, Vol. 9 No. 4, pp. 386–394. https://doi.org/10.1108/14720700910984936Google Scholar
York, S., Lavi, R., Dori, Y.J., Orgill, M. (2019). “Applications of Systems Thinking in STEM Education” Journal of Chemical Education, Vol. 96 No. 12, pp. 2742–2751 https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.9b00261CrossRefGoogle Scholar