The interplay between quality of collaboration, design project evolution and outcome in an architectural design studio

This paper addresses the issue of collaboration dynamics in design by examining, in a longitudinal setting, how quality of collaboration and design co-evolve during a real design studio in architecture. We observed two groups of four students working in a three-month architecture studio setting. Based on a multidimensional method for assessing the quality of collaboration, we investigated the interplay between the design project evolution, design outcomes and the quality of collaboration between the students. The two groups were compared at early, middle and final steps of the project. Results show that dimensions of collaboration evolve independently and that ‘good’ collaboration is a cause and a consequence in the rapid progression of the design. In our conclusion, we discuss the links between design projects progression, their outcomes and quality of collaboration, which co-evolve during the sessions.