Design decision-making in infrastructure tenders is a challenging task for contractors due to limited time and resources. Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) promises to support contractors in dealing with this challenge. However, the ability of MCDA to ensure decision quality in the specific context of infrastructure tenders has gained little attention. By undertaking a longitudinal case study on early design decisions in a tender for a design-build project in the Netherlands the relationship between MCDA and decision quality is investigated. The case results show that in the early tender phase the decision making very much relies on the experience and knowledge of engineers. If MCDA is inappropriately used in such a context it can create impressions of soundly underpinned evaluations of design options while neglecting uncertainties and leading to low-quality decision. Although MCDA defines the “what” is required for structuring the decision problem, it does not support decision-makers in the “how” to do it. The explicit consideration of decision quality elements in MCDA can support the “how” and can create awareness for decision makers concerning importance, scope and uncertainty of criteria.

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Higher education learning and teaching methods have changed while most educational buildings are still rather traditional. Yet, there is an increasing interest in whether we can educate today's higher education students in yesterday's buildings. This paper aims to contribute to this debate by studying the learning space choices of higher education students in relation to their learning activities, personal characteristics and other considerations that may play a role in choosing particular learning spaces. A diary research method was adopted, in which 52 business management students of a Dutch University of Applied Sciences participated. They reported which learning activities they worked on during a week, where and why there. The diary format builds on the literature from various disciplines and was used in combination with a questionnaire and interviews. The findings show significant correlations between the students’ learning space choices and their learning activities, their personal characteristics and their individual preferences. Because of the shift from a teacher-led approach to a student-led approach, higher education institutions need to provide more informal learning spaces in open areas and quiet learning spaces for individuals and small groups.@en