How do you begin the process of architectural research? What exactly is architectural research? Architecture itself is the art and practice of designing and constructing buildings.

What then does the research aspect of architecture mean? This article covers everything you need to understand as regards the practice of initiating the process of architectural research. Let’s get started.

What Is Architectural Research?

Architectural research is the system of generating insights, knowledge and understanding in an organized, modern and relevant dimension. As you’ll soon see, this research system is different from the ancient times.

The research in architecture is based on tools, competencies and methods discovered in the field of architecture. The strategies, scope, knowledge and tactics adopted in architecture come to the fore in carrying out architectural research.

Research is, therefore, vital to the practice of architecture because it teaches the basic importance of research skills in the field of architecture. This also helps students to see the essence of research and learning in developing architectural masterpieces.

Thanks to innovations and online technology. They’ve all provided easy access to platforms for architecture research.

How then does one kick-start the process of research in architecture?

In the next subheading below, we shall proceed to focus on the core of the article – the process of initiating architectural research.

The Processes Involved In Starting Architectural Research

There are two basic approaches to follow in starting an architectural research.

• The Architectural Design Based Research
• Action Research Approach

In this article, we shall consider the processes to follow in approaching architectural research using these two methods.

Processes To Follow In Architectural Design-Based Research

Step 1: Create Your Research Paper Topic

Before taking up your research, you need to choose your topic. Recognizing that architecture is a broad field with different topics such as history, philosophy, design theory, etc. Consult essay writing reviews and pick the best materials to develop your research, from the topic to the overall content of your research.

Step 2: Gather Your Best Resources

After choosing your research topic, the next thing to do is to get relevant information to proceed with your research.

You would need to use available journals and architectural research papers vital to your architecture paper. Don’t forget to credit the original owners of these materials by referencing them at each point you glean from their knowledge.

It’s also possible to acquire resources by organizing a survey, sending out questionnaires or developing research questions.

On another note, you could opt for the best research writing services to save time with the research process.

Step 3: Structure The Research Paper

Arrange the points of your research in a well-structured format. This makes it readable. In addition, it’ll allow a consistent flow and connection of thoughts when it is read.

Recall that your abstract and introduction are two vital elements of your research paper. These two must be generated properly to retain the attention of your readers till the end of your research paper.

Finally, a well-structured research paper speaks of competence and expertise whenever professionals see or examine its content.

Step 4: Review Your Work

Once you’re done writing, a proper review is needed on your architectural research paper. This is vital to correct errors in the article.

With the help of editing tools, especially Grammarly and the Hemingway App, you can easily edit errors and produce easy-to-read articles that your audience will understand.

What else? Cite the articles you source from properly to acknowledge the use of others’ ideas.

Here’s a last tip.

Getting Funding For Your Architectural Research

There’s no doubt that you’d have to invest enough money in carrying out your research successfully. Sometimes you’d have to make trips to collect and develop research questions.

Major funding is obtained via architectural bodies.  However, most of these funds are based on the feasibility of the projects and their relevance to the field of architecture.

Schools also support researchers with funding and sometimes they help in discovering grant opportunities.

Right now, we’ll proceed to examine the processes to follow in the research process.

Processes To Follow In Action Research Approach

1. The Strategy

Here, the focus is on one particular field of architecture. However, there’s a collaborative effort by various organizations in carrying out this research. The goal is to align the research effort to match the research firm’s business strategy.

The strategy is such that strategic benefits and comparative advantage of the firm are derived from the combination of research efforts from different firms. The goal is to develop new areas of expertise to help the firm improve its current approaches.

2. Daring

Daring here implies that the research is done with the approach to inventing something new, developing a revolution to a piece of existing knowledge.

In this process, the focus of research is to test new methods, and ideas or experiment with knowledge. In this case, mistakes, trials, and errors are common. However, the positive result of this approach gives the firm a big comparative advantage.

3. Networking

The next line of action here is to build a network of experts, advisers, and architectural practitioners.

These individuals help to test, discuss and examine the new concepts essential to the success of the research.

Networking is essential as it helps to gather knowledge, ideas and wisdom from different professionals in the same field. It allows for collaborative research processes and fosters discoveries in the architectural profession. Of course, as they say, two heads are better than one. How much more when there are many professionals?

4. Teamwork

Collaboration necessitates teamwork. Hence, in carrying out architectural research, a major way to stir creativity is via teamwork and collaborative efforts of firms or organizations involved in the research process.

Therefore, it’s vital that teamwork is prioritized in the processes involved in conceptualizing new ideas and introducing innovation. All of these give a competitive edge to the architectural firm carrying out the research.

Also, here’s one last tip.

Involve The Academia in The Action Research Process

The architecture academia focuses on research and development. This is a core area of interest for architectural firms. It encourages academic researchers to be involved in carrying out architectural research which assists with a better understanding of events and knowledge within the sphere of architecture. Some of these include the time pressures of practice and the roles research projects play.

Conclusion

In summary, this article has covered extensively the processes to follow when carrying out architectural research, covering two major approaches: design and action research methods. Also within the article is other beneficial information along the same line of thought.