Abstract Zoos are important informal learning environments. We conducted an external reflective professional development program for a zoo’s informal science educators to understand the process and implications of this program. Six educators engaged in an 8-stage program that included self-observation of videos and discussions with colleagues. Educators' ability to change their educational processes was based on their ability to identify a gap between their declared goals and actual practices, or a gap between their explicit and implicit beliefs. The most impactful aspects of this professional development program were video observations, discussion with colleagues, and the researcher's guidance and scaffolding during video observations with educators.
{"title":"The Value of Identifying a Gap in a Reflective Professional Development Program for Informal Science Educators in a Zoo","authors":"Netanel Dwolatzky, Chagit Tischler, Orit Ben-Zvi Assaraf","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2021.1930466","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2021.1930466","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Zoos are important informal learning environments. We conducted an external reflective professional development program for a zoo’s informal science educators to understand the process and implications of this program. Six educators engaged in an 8-stage program that included self-observation of videos and discussions with colleagues. Educators' ability to change their educational processes was based on their ability to identify a gap between their declared goals and actual practices, or a gap between their explicit and implicit beliefs. The most impactful aspects of this professional development program were video observations, discussion with colleagues, and the researcher's guidance and scaffolding during video observations with educators.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"203 - 219"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2021-06-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2021.1930466","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43686181","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-28DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2021.1925505
Andrew Jason Turner, Caroline D. Hardin, M. Berland
Abstract Hackathons provide an informal, structured learning environment where groups of participants develop and present a project over a specified period of time. During their work, participants often take on unfamiliar roles and responsibilities and sometimes experience shifts in self-perception and affinities toward different identities. This study uses a novel application of Falk’s museum visitor identities framework to examine how identities and learning manifest with regard to each other at hackathons. Falk’s framework and instrument was adapted and used in pre- and post-surveys at three hackathons in university settings ranging from 12-36 hours. We present our findings on whether the framework can be applied to hackathon participants, whether the instrument can be used to document instances of identity shifts or stays, and whether trends from past studies which used the framework were also present at these hackathons. We then discuss practical, theoretical, and methodological implications of this work.
{"title":"Hackathons and ‘i’dentities: Museum Visitor Identities in Other Informal Learning Environments","authors":"Andrew Jason Turner, Caroline D. Hardin, M. Berland","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2021.1925505","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2021.1925505","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Hackathons provide an informal, structured learning environment where groups of participants develop and present a project over a specified period of time. During their work, participants often take on unfamiliar roles and responsibilities and sometimes experience shifts in self-perception and affinities toward different identities. This study uses a novel application of Falk’s museum visitor identities framework to examine how identities and learning manifest with regard to each other at hackathons. Falk’s framework and instrument was adapted and used in pre- and post-surveys at three hackathons in university settings ranging from 12-36 hours. We present our findings on whether the framework can be applied to hackathon participants, whether the instrument can be used to document instances of identity shifts or stays, and whether trends from past studies which used the framework were also present at these hackathons. We then discuss practical, theoretical, and methodological implications of this work.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"184 - 202"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2021-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2021.1925505","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46947893","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-05DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2021.1907150
Nicole Heuken, Anna-Lena Schüder, Andreas Christian
Abstract This article studies the differences between first-time and repeat visitors to a large temporary exhibition at a natural history museum. Cued visitors were overtly observed and then interviewed. Compared to first-time visitors, repeat visitors generally visited museums more frequently and tended to be more interested in science. During the visit, they appeared more focused and selective. Repeat visitors engaged with fewer exhibits but spent more time on average engaging with single exhibits than did first-time visitors. There was no detectible tendency to use distant areas of the exhibit more during repeat visits. In comparison to first-time visitors, repeat visitors spent more time at interactive stations but less time at noninteractive exhibits.
{"title":"Differences between First-Time and Repeat Visitors in a Special Exhibition at a Natural History Museum","authors":"Nicole Heuken, Anna-Lena Schüder, Andreas Christian","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2021.1907150","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2021.1907150","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This article studies the differences between first-time and repeat visitors to a large temporary exhibition at a natural history museum. Cued visitors were overtly observed and then interviewed. Compared to first-time visitors, repeat visitors generally visited museums more frequently and tended to be more interested in science. During the visit, they appeared more focused and selective. Repeat visitors engaged with fewer exhibits but spent more time on average engaging with single exhibits than did first-time visitors. There was no detectible tendency to use distant areas of the exhibit more during repeat visits. In comparison to first-time visitors, repeat visitors spent more time at interactive stations but less time at noninteractive exhibits.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"166 - 183"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2021-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2021.1907150","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49547644","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-04-26DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2021.1907152
C. Price, J. Greenslit, Lauren Applebaum, Natalie C. Harris, G. Segovia, K. Quinn, S. Krogh-Jespersen
Abstract This study looks at the types of awe guests feel when they leave art and science cultural institutions of various sizes and context, and how it may be related to what they remember learning. We surveyed 899 guests at the end of their visit and 550 of them again about one week later. Measures included a scale of awe-related perceptions (both positive and negative) along with questions about memories guests have about what they learned during their visit. Results show awe-related perceptions were consistent across institutions with only one significant difference, even when grouped by context (art vs. science). Guests’ memories of profound educational and emotional experiences were weakly related to the amount and types of awe they felt. This connection was strongest with memories of emotional connections and being surprised. We also found connections to social experiences and that prior knowledge was a strong, consistent predictor of positive awe.
{"title":"Awe & Memories of Learning in Science and Art Museums","authors":"C. Price, J. Greenslit, Lauren Applebaum, Natalie C. Harris, G. Segovia, K. Quinn, S. Krogh-Jespersen","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2021.1907152","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2021.1907152","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This study looks at the types of awe guests feel when they leave art and science cultural institutions of various sizes and context, and how it may be related to what they remember learning. We surveyed 899 guests at the end of their visit and 550 of them again about one week later. Measures included a scale of awe-related perceptions (both positive and negative) along with questions about memories guests have about what they learned during their visit. Results show awe-related perceptions were consistent across institutions with only one significant difference, even when grouped by context (art vs. science). Guests’ memories of profound educational and emotional experiences were weakly related to the amount and types of awe they felt. This connection was strongest with memories of emotional connections and being surprised. We also found connections to social experiences and that prior knowledge was a strong, consistent predictor of positive awe.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"137 - 165"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2021-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2021.1907152","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47109611","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-04-13DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2021.1907151
Jøran Rudi
Abstract In museum exhibition design, the experiential aspects of virtual reality and other immersive technologies are increasingly being explored. This study contributes to these explorations, focusing on the role of hearing and sound in visitors’ experiences of a hybrid virtual environment designed for an architecture museum exhibition. Physically, the environment consisted of a full-scale, multi-level structure installed in a large gallery space. Virtually, visitors ‘switched’ between being in a contemporary villa and a natural shoreline biotope while moving in the physical installation, experiencing and comparing nature and architecture as “parallel realities." This study investigates visitors’ experiences of realism in the soundscape and how this contributed to the immersive experience. Exit interviews with randomly selected visitors on the sound experience (N = 82) are primary data for this study. Visitor responses to questions related to sound (N = 320) and data collected from interviews and observations of recruited visitor pairs (N = 16) are complementary data. The study finds that visitors considered sound essential to the high degree of realism they experienced in the hybrid virtual environment, in the sense of “being there,” and that this was dependent on signal types that were appropriate in type and variation. Additionally, relevant to exhibition design practice, issues of quality and delivery methods had minimal impact on the visitor experience.
{"title":"Designing Soundscapes for Presence in Virtual Reality Exhibitions: A Study of Visitor Experiences","authors":"Jøran Rudi","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2021.1907151","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2021.1907151","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract In museum exhibition design, the experiential aspects of virtual reality and other immersive technologies are increasingly being explored. This study contributes to these explorations, focusing on the role of hearing and sound in visitors’ experiences of a hybrid virtual environment designed for an architecture museum exhibition. Physically, the environment consisted of a full-scale, multi-level structure installed in a large gallery space. Virtually, visitors ‘switched’ between being in a contemporary villa and a natural shoreline biotope while moving in the physical installation, experiencing and comparing nature and architecture as “parallel realities.\" This study investigates visitors’ experiences of realism in the soundscape and how this contributed to the immersive experience. Exit interviews with randomly selected visitors on the sound experience (N = 82) are primary data for this study. Visitor responses to questions related to sound (N = 320) and data collected from interviews and observations of recruited visitor pairs (N = 16) are complementary data. The study finds that visitors considered sound essential to the high degree of realism they experienced in the hybrid virtual environment, in the sense of “being there,” and that this was dependent on signal types that were appropriate in type and variation. Additionally, relevant to exhibition design practice, issues of quality and delivery methods had minimal impact on the visitor experience.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"121 - 136"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2021-04-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2021.1907151","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49172001","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-12-17DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2020.1865090
Chaim Noy
Abstract Museum scholars and professionals agree that audiences’ texts are under-researched and are often approached anecdotally. This state limits the ability to advance effective theorizing of, and interventions in, audience participation and engagement with museums. The article addresses this lacuna by promoting a contextual media-centered conceptualization of both audiences’ texts and the media that elicit and mediate them. The article responds to the mediatic turn in museum studies and to the recent call for on-the-ground research of media-related museum practice. Taking comment books as a case study, the concept of response vehicles (RVs) is offered, defined as onsite institutional media, serving to elicit, record, and display audiences’ texts. The study employs data-rich qualitative methods to depict the participatory affordances of two RVs in two history museums, and to analyze the texts they elicit and display. Four reading strategies (“keys”), tailored specifically to evaluate audiences texts as forms of participation, are demonstrated.
{"title":"Museum Audience’s Texts: Toward a Contextual Conceptual Reading","authors":"Chaim Noy","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2020.1865090","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2020.1865090","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Museum scholars and professionals agree that audiences’ texts are under-researched and are often approached anecdotally. This state limits the ability to advance effective theorizing of, and interventions in, audience participation and engagement with museums. The article addresses this lacuna by promoting a contextual media-centered conceptualization of both audiences’ texts and the media that elicit and mediate them. The article responds to the mediatic turn in museum studies and to the recent call for on-the-ground research of media-related museum practice. Taking comment books as a case study, the concept of response vehicles (RVs) is offered, defined as onsite institutional media, serving to elicit, record, and display audiences’ texts. The study employs data-rich qualitative methods to depict the participatory affordances of two RVs in two history museums, and to analyze the texts they elicit and display. Four reading strategies (“keys”), tailored specifically to evaluate audiences texts as forms of participation, are demonstrated.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"38 - 57"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-12-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2020.1865090","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44903775","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-12-17DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2020.1865089
Megan Conrad, Lori B. Reider, Vanessa Lobue
Abstract Snakes and spiders commonly elicit fear. However, despite the pervasiveness of these fears in adulthood, little is known about how they develop in early childhood. Informal learning environments, like zoos, allow for observation of parent–child conversations about these animals. Such naturalistic conversations may contain negative talk and may be one mechanism for the development of fears. In Study 1, we interviewed 241 preschool-aged children about snakes and spiders. In Study 2, 15 parent–child conversations were observed at a zoo. Across studies, we found that participants provided less positive (Study 2) and more negative (Study 1) information about snakes and spiders than other animals, and that children reported more fear (Study 1). Our results highlight the availability of negative information about snakes and spiders, and we discuss how we can use children’s early experiences in informal learning settings to teach them about animals without contributing to the development of early fears.
{"title":"Exploring Parent–Child Conversations about Live Snakes and Spiders: Implications for the Development of Animal Fears","authors":"Megan Conrad, Lori B. Reider, Vanessa Lobue","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2020.1865089","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2020.1865089","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Snakes and spiders commonly elicit fear. However, despite the pervasiveness of these fears in adulthood, little is known about how they develop in early childhood. Informal learning environments, like zoos, allow for observation of parent–child conversations about these animals. Such naturalistic conversations may contain negative talk and may be one mechanism for the development of fears. In Study 1, we interviewed 241 preschool-aged children about snakes and spiders. In Study 2, 15 parent–child conversations were observed at a zoo. Across studies, we found that participants provided less positive (Study 2) and more negative (Study 1) information about snakes and spiders than other animals, and that children reported more fear (Study 1). Our results highlight the availability of negative information about snakes and spiders, and we discuss how we can use children’s early experiences in informal learning settings to teach them about animals without contributing to the development of early fears.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"58 - 78"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-12-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2020.1865089","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44731946","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-12-15DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2020.1862590
Eric Knackmuhs, J. Farmer, D. Knapp
Abstract Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site (ESP) is a venue for public education and dialogue on contemporary as well as historical criminal justice issues. Since visitors to prison museums typically have had limited involvement with prisons, the experience they have onsite may impact their perceptions of contemporary criminal justice issues. Therefore, this study examined the influence of the onsite experiences, as well as policy narratives, policy beliefs, and underlying values on interpretive outcomes. Visitors were surveyed at the end of their visit to Eastern State Penitentiary. Multiple regression was conducted to identify which factors predicted interpretive outcomes. Results showed an increased awareness of criminal justice issues, increased empathy and appreciation for those involved in the system, and support for criminal justice reform across ideological boundaries.
{"title":"Addressing Contemporary Criminal Justice Issues as Interpretive Outcomes at a Prison Museum","authors":"Eric Knackmuhs, J. Farmer, D. Knapp","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2020.1862590","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2020.1862590","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site (ESP) is a venue for public education and dialogue on contemporary as well as historical criminal justice issues. Since visitors to prison museums typically have had limited involvement with prisons, the experience they have onsite may impact their perceptions of contemporary criminal justice issues. Therefore, this study examined the influence of the onsite experiences, as well as policy narratives, policy beliefs, and underlying values on interpretive outcomes. Visitors were surveyed at the end of their visit to Eastern State Penitentiary. Multiple regression was conducted to identify which factors predicted interpretive outcomes. Results showed an increased awareness of criminal justice issues, increased empathy and appreciation for those involved in the system, and support for criminal justice reform across ideological boundaries.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"1 - 16"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2020.1862590","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43239745","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-12-12DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2020.1863056
Susan M. Letourneau, Katherine McMillan Culp, David Wells
Abstract Many studies have documented the impact of maker experiences on children’s learning, but few have examined how caregivers participate in maker activities in museums, both as facilitators of their children’s learning and as learners in their own right. This qualitative study involved observations and interviews with 88 caregivers participating in a range of making and tinkering activities at a science museum. Aspects of the physical setting (including the arrangement and familiarity of tools and materials) and social setting (including facilitators’ interactions with children versus caregivers) influenced whether families participated and the roles that caregivers played (observing, facilitating, or making). Across these roles, caregivers described benefitting as learners — by noticing their children’s abilities and interests, learning new ways to support their children’s learning, or fostering their own creativity. The results highlight strategies that museums can use to create inclusive maker activities that recognize caregivers’ many roles and motivations during family visits.
{"title":"Engaging Caregivers in Making: The Role of Physical and Social Settings in Museum-Based Making and Tinkering Activities","authors":"Susan M. Letourneau, Katherine McMillan Culp, David Wells","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2020.1863056","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2020.1863056","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Many studies have documented the impact of maker experiences on children’s learning, but few have examined how caregivers participate in maker activities in museums, both as facilitators of their children’s learning and as learners in their own right. This qualitative study involved observations and interviews with 88 caregivers participating in a range of making and tinkering activities at a science museum. Aspects of the physical setting (including the arrangement and familiarity of tools and materials) and social setting (including facilitators’ interactions with children versus caregivers) influenced whether families participated and the roles that caregivers played (observing, facilitating, or making). Across these roles, caregivers described benefitting as learners — by noticing their children’s abilities and interests, learning new ways to support their children’s learning, or fostering their own creativity. The results highlight strategies that museums can use to create inclusive maker activities that recognize caregivers’ many roles and motivations during family visits.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"17 - 37"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2020.1863056","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43625601","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-11-22DOI: 10.1080/10645578.2020.1852809
J. Sneddon, K. Hughes, R. Ballantyne
Abstract Zoos and aquariums consider themselves agents of environmental change, yet systematic efforts to evaluate how diverse audiences perceive individual exhibits and interpretive messages are rare. In response to a growing interest in understanding how visitors’ values (i.e. broad motivational life goals) influence their experiences and learning outcomes, this article examines whether visitors’ evaluations of a zoo exhibit reflect their value priorities. In an exploratory study of exhibit evaluation, 23 visitors were allocated to focus groups according to whether they prioritized self-transcendence, openness to change, or conservation values. Participants were then asked to identify elements of a target wildlife exhibit that would or would not motivate them to adopt conservation actions. While there were some commonalities, each values based focus group reacted to the target exhibit and interpretation differently and in ways that reflected the content of their shared value priorities. Suggestions for how this novel values-based approach to exhibit evaluation can be used to create messages and experiences that tap visitors’ value priorities are discussed.
{"title":"Using Values-Based Focus Groups to Evaluate Visitors’ Perceptions and Interpretation of a Wildlife Exhibit","authors":"J. Sneddon, K. Hughes, R. Ballantyne","doi":"10.1080/10645578.2020.1852809","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10645578.2020.1852809","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Zoos and aquariums consider themselves agents of environmental change, yet systematic efforts to evaluate how diverse audiences perceive individual exhibits and interpretive messages are rare. In response to a growing interest in understanding how visitors’ values (i.e. broad motivational life goals) influence their experiences and learning outcomes, this article examines whether visitors’ evaluations of a zoo exhibit reflect their value priorities. In an exploratory study of exhibit evaluation, 23 visitors were allocated to focus groups according to whether they prioritized self-transcendence, openness to change, or conservation values. Participants were then asked to identify elements of a target wildlife exhibit that would or would not motivate them to adopt conservation actions. While there were some commonalities, each values based focus group reacted to the target exhibit and interpretation differently and in ways that reflected the content of their shared value priorities. Suggestions for how this novel values-based approach to exhibit evaluation can be used to create messages and experiences that tap visitors’ value priorities are discussed.","PeriodicalId":45516,"journal":{"name":"Visitor Studies","volume":"24 1","pages":"100 - 120"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2020-11-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10645578.2020.1852809","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41574161","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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