How Information and Communication Tools (ICT) affect the processes and decision-making in professional urban design practice?

Abstract

Literature suggests that introducing IT tools into urban design practice provokes a new paradigm that involves new modes of thinking that would increase the quality of the design and decision-making process. However, their effective usage in mainstream practice in US Planning departments lags due to technical, financial, social, and institutional constraints. This mixed-method research pursued in three phases in San Diego uses IT tools to support its planning for growth and design control. The research objective is twofold: to investigate how urban designers use IT tools at various phases and to assess the impact of their usage on the design process. The empirical results were compared to the theoretical propositions to highlight the areas and the extent to what the IT tools’ usage has influenced the design process. The results demonstrated that the impact of IT tools usage correlates with several procedural and substantive factors influenced by the tools' capabilities, the designer's skills in their usage, and the choice of the design methodology. The results did not provide clear evidence that a paradigmatic shift in mainstream practice seems to exist. They suggest a computational methodology that aligns and connects new tools with their methods of usage through new concepts and modes of thinking and communication. This shift yet implies a shift in urban design pedagogy, skillset, knowledge, and training.