Design Research Report Examples

Design research reports take on many different formats. Notice how each of these research reports (often referred to as “Case Studies”) tells a story. They aren’t just data, charts, and conclusions—they bring the human element into the story.

Research Report Examples

These examples specifically report research.

• Oxford Commuters and the Efficacy of Political Advertising: xdMFA Fall 2016 Students, Mateus & Chen
• Exploring Adult Satisfaction Within Healthcare Facilities: Comm Design Fall 2018 Students, Goheen, Cortez, Eshett
• The Use of Plastic at Miami University Off-Campus Parties: Comm Design Fall 2019 Students, Troyer & Nguyen

Research Reports with Design Prototypes

These reports share research outcomes and take the next step—design prototyping. These students in the xdMFA program conducted research and created outcomes based on their research.

• Conversation Groups & The Intersections of Language & Culture: xdMFA Fall 2018 Students Dean, Huffman, Mauk
• The Anthropomorphizing of Technology: xdMFA 2016 Student Jerry Belich
• Pokémon-Go AR Game: Designing To Match The Pokémon Fans Needs: xdMFA 2015 Students Cela, Chen, Mateus Forero, Mandke
• Teaching Anatomy to Yoga Teacher Trainees: xdMFA Fall 2016 Student Ali Place

Case Studies

The rest of these reports show a wide range of types of reporting. Most are geared toward stakeholders/supporters of each project and their communities.

• City of Owasso Character Initiative: Cheatham, Hicks, Keefer, Yang
• The Design Difference: Japan Society, the Designers Accord, Common Ground, and GOOD
• Valuing Design: Mapping Design Impact and Value in Six Public and 3rd Sector Projects: Yee, White, Lennon

Dennis Cheatham

Associate Professor, Communication Design