Changes in “Good Design” from the Standpoint of Screening Criteria
GOOD DESIGN AWARD has been exploring what good design is and evolving with the changing times. This process can be seen in the changes in the screening criteria that have continued since 1963, when the screening of entries began. In order to visualize and intuitively recognize the process of change, the screening criteria are processed in natural language as text data, and frequent and characteristic words are extracted.
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During the period of high economic growth, the spread of televisions and telephones in households dramatically changed the way people lived. In 1964, the Tokyo Olympic Games were held, and pictograms were set up around the city, and the word “design” began to become common. Around the world, it was the time of the first successful spaceflight recalled by the words “the earth was bluish,” the boom of hippie culture and folk songs, and the beginning of pop culture.
The 1970s began with the opening of the Japan World Exposition (Osaka Expo). The number of private cars soared. It is also referred to as the age of Japanese originals, and Japan’s “manufacturing” of automobiles and other products won admiration worldwide. Instant food and hamburger shops started to become popular. However, the energy crisis also occurred. In the 1980s, it shifted from the Showa era to the Heisei era and the economic bubble elated the market. Japan, in particular, dominated in the semiconductors field. From this period, not only air pollution, but also water pollution, destruction of nature, and other pollution became evident in many areas of Japan.
The economic bubble burst in the early 1990s. Meanwhile, in 1994, the Internet arrived in Japan and spread explosively. In 1998, Windows 98 and iMac were released, and Google was established, and in 1999, NTT Docomo’s i-mode, the world’s first mobile phone with internet connection, became a big hit. In addition, electronic devices such as Super Nintendo, Print Club photo booths, and the quadrupedal walking robot “AIBO” became indispensable to life, leading to an era of value change.
GOOD DESIGN AWARD has been privatized since 1998.
The beginning of the 21st century. Japan entered a deflationary economy, and social issues such as depopulation in rural areas and the gap between rich and poor started to emerge. The world witnessed the September 11 attacks. In addition, the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) was held to raise awareness of ecological issues such as global warming. The Internet became established as a communication tool, and services such as blogs and SNS emerged. A diversity of values was visualized.
In 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake, a massive earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0, the largest ever recorded in Japan, hit the country. In the wake of the disaster, there have been a number of changes, including increased awareness of disaster prevention and local communities, as well as increased attention to energy policy in light of the nature of nuclear power. The number of internet users in the country exceeded 100 million, and the development of voice recognition AI, the popularity of cashless transactions, and the evolution of new technologies such as drones continued.
The global outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) led to unprecedented emergencies around the world, including lockdowns and immigration restrictions. A “new normal” was put into practice to combat infectious diseases, including the wearing of face masks, social distance, and the adoption of an online environment at work, school, and elsewhere. There is also a growing awareness of sustainability due to the spread of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
