The impact of virtual product dissection environments on student design learning and self-efficacy

Abstract

While recent design efforts have led to the development of virtual dissection tools that reduce the costs associated with physical dissection, little is known about how these virtual environments impact student design learning. Therefore, the current study was developed to address this knowledge gap through two investigations: (1) an experimental study that examines the impact of virtual dissection on design learning, knowledge retention, and self-efficacy and (2) a qualitative study focused on student experiences during virtual dissection. These studies show that physical dissection leads to a higher electromechanical self-efficacy gain compared with virtual dissection; however, the method of dissection did not affect student learning. We use these findings to provide recommendations for the use of product dissection in design education.

Keywords:

• product dissection
• engineering design education
• hands-on design
• virtual design interfaces
• reverse engineering

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported, in part, by the National Science Foundation [grant number DUE-1223674]. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations presented in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.