A dramaturgical exploration of engineering judgment processes in undergraduate student writing

The objective of this full paper is to explore the interplay between engineering judgment and communication practices involved in completing an undergraduate systems engineering senior project. We view engineering judgment as an embodied process that emerges through discourse as individuals position themselves relative to both other individuals and disciplinary norms in a range of contexts. It happens, broadly, through a series of tasks and thinking processes through which students choose and formulate problems, make assumptions, select data, and adopt roles in relation to disciplinary norms in different contexts. We explore this conceptualization of engineering judgment using thematic and dramaturgical analysis of a single case. The data collected are a semi-structured 90-minute interview collected with one systems engineering senior after completion of their senior project and graduation from their degree program. These data are first coded using a thematic analysis approach, then re-analyzed using a dramaturgical approach. Our findings raise important issues about the blend of communication demands faced by practicing engineers that potentially impact the socialization of engineering students. Different communication demands require students to use different ways to navigate complexity. The varied communication forms also prompt students to view themselves as professionals with the capacity to judge and act from a position of professional authority that vary with the situational context.