Date of Award

2012

Degree Type

Major Research Paper

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Fashion

First Advisor

Lucia Dell’Agnese

Abstract

Children with complex medical issues often require a placement of a tube known as a central venous line in their major artery. The insertion prohibits such individuals from experiencing the physical and psychological benefits of water activities. This qualitative and quantitative study examined the swimwear needs of children fitted with a central venous line based on a user analysis using Lamb and Kallal’s (1992) Functional Expressive Aesthetic Consumer Needs Model of design attributes. The study was conducted in 3 phases: user analysis, design development, and field-testing. User analysis results revealed that the 7 participants (4 parents, 3 children) rated function as the most important design attribute, followed equally by expressive and aesthetic elements. The second phase produced a prototype that incorporated participants’ needs and preferences. Field testing concluded that the prototype fulfilled expressive and aesthetic needs but only partially fulfilled functional needs.