Investigating a design validation process: how jurors handle criteria in a design competition

Abstract

This article attempts to look into the dynamics involved in the use of criteria to evaluate projects in a big Brazilian design competition. An ethnographic approach was carefully adopted to collect empirical information about the agents who performed in the competition context. Every impression about the dynamics and the actions of those who performed during the competition was taken into consideration. The evaluation of the projects revealed itself as an ongoing process in which criteria had to be actualised in order to work properly. That is, throughout the jury deliberation, the initial abstract and non-specific given criteria became more distinct, allowing for a coherent ranking of the projects. This study also observed the important role played by criteria, jurors and projects, possibly forming a kind of a hybrid agent, and affecting the competition's results.