Investigation on the Awareness and Preference for Wood Culture to Promote the Values of Wood: III. Living Environment and Trend of Wood Utilization

Abstract

Improving public awareness of wood is crucial for expanding the use of wood and establishing a wood culture. In this study, the environment and trends of the public’s wood utilization were analyzed using a questionnaire survey and online text mining at a time when eco-friendly practices are gaining popularity. As a result of reducing climatic and environmental concerns and its positive physical and psychological effects, the use of wood is predicted to rise in areas intimately connected to everyday living, such as wood furniture, wooden structures, and interior materials. Nonetheless, there was a negative awareness that wood was expensive, difficult to maintain, and associated with deforestation. The correlations between wood-related search terms on major Korean portal sites were analyzed and categorized into five groups: Wooden architecture, cultural education, woodworking, wood industry, and wood policy. As a building material, wood was seen as more traditional and friendly than reinforced concrete and stone. Eighty-six percent of respondents expected to utilize wood as a building material in the future, regardless of whether the wood is domestically produced or imported. Sixty-five percent responded favorably about the effects of wood on the health of wooden home inhabitants. It is believed that both active publicity and quantifiable value analysis of human and environmental friendliness are required to increase pro-environment awareness of wood utilization.