The evaluation of museum engagement - User Centred Design principles and the development of audience-focussed interpretation
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Warwick
Department Name: WMG
Abstract
The studentship will focus on the translation of product evaluation technologies developed within the fields of manufacturing and engineering to the evaluation of exhibitions, displays and engagement activity within museums and the broader culture and heritage sector. It will examine both traditional 'glass case' displays and digital technologies.
To date, very little work has been undertaken on the determination of best practice for a number of emerging technologies that look set to revolutionise the way that museums present their objects and materials to museum visitors. Such technologies, including 3D printing, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), are becoming increasingly common in museums as a novel way of presenting content to visitors, but little research has, to date, taken a rigorous approach to analysing how these technologies influence the museum visitor experience, how welcome they are, and their impact on learning for visitors.
The project thus has the capacity to develop and share best practice in relation to the application of User Centred Design to museum displays and exhibitions, and to ascertain best practice within emerging visualisation technologies.
To date, very little work has been undertaken on the determination of best practice for a number of emerging technologies that look set to revolutionise the way that museums present their objects and materials to museum visitors. Such technologies, including 3D printing, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), are becoming increasingly common in museums as a novel way of presenting content to visitors, but little research has, to date, taken a rigorous approach to analysing how these technologies influence the museum visitor experience, how welcome they are, and their impact on learning for visitors.
The project thus has the capacity to develop and share best practice in relation to the application of User Centred Design to museum displays and exhibitions, and to ascertain best practice within emerging visualisation technologies.
| Title | Museum Exhibit User Experience Framework and Evaluation Methods |
| Description | My doctoral research programme has resulted in the development and publication of a framework for conceptualising Museum Exhibit User Experience, and various evaluation methods that can be used to capture this experience in an nuanced yet standardised way. This framework and methods are available for museum practitioners to use in exhibition evaluation and development. |
| Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | I have had a few museum practitioners approach me for support in using these tools for evaluation and development activities. This has resulted in training, workshops, and consultancy work. |
| Description | Conference Presentation at Connected Communities Heritage Network |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Conference Presentation at Connected Communities Heritage Network Conference, 2021. I talked about work on museum exhibition activities during Covid-19 where museums were shut and exhibition activities and content were put and delivered online. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Conference Presentation, Museums + Heritage Show 2022 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presentation at Museums + Heritage Show, 2022. The presentation talked through my research in terms of the theoretical framework and evaluation methods using an example of the evaluation project for an exhibition, Meat the Future, at Oxford University Museum of Natural History. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://show.museumsandheritage.com/product/2022-show-recordings-access/ |
| Description | Museums + Heritage Show, 2023 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Conference Presentation at 2023 Museums + Heritage Show. Following on from the presentation delivered in 2022, this session looked at taking summative evaluation from one project and using it, in conjunction with formative evaluation, to develop a new exhibition. This shows the benefits of the standardised nature of the MEUX evaluation methods. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | NatSCA, 2023 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Conference presentation at NatSCA conference, 2023. This talk was about engaging museum visitors in messaging on the climate and biodiversity crises, using three different exhibit techniques. Using evaluation data, the talk explored different engagement techniques which created different results for visitors, but all about the same overarching topic. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |