Historical research in the sphere of architecture and art: problems of beginning researchers

Abstract

The main problems that arise for novice researchers – undergraduates and graduate students of architecture and art – when conducting historical research in the professional area of architecture, urban planning, and design are identified and analyzed. In this area, the implementation (design) and the study (historical research) of professional activity are fundamentally different: they have different goals, means, methods and foundations (scientific base). Three groups of problems have been identified. The first group is caused by a misunderstanding of the above fundamental difference. The second group logically follows from the first and manifests itself in a misunderstanding of a number of fundamental requirements for dissertation research (novelty and reliability of research results). The third group is due to the lack of practical experience in conducting historical research, which leads to unlawful use of methods and categories of thinking borrowed from design activities.