Abstract: It has been over a decade since Cameron and Gatewood (2000, 2003; Gatewood & Cameron, 2004) conducted their immensely intriguing research on numinous experiences in museums. Inspired by this pioneering work, the current study was undertaken to investigate more deeply these kinds of experiences with museum objects. The essence of this encounter, as revealed by a phenomenological investigation, is comprised of a holistic uniting of intellect and affect, with a direct link to the tangible and symbolic nature of the object, a feeling of being transported, and intensely profound connections with the past, self, and spirit. These experiences are interpreted as document-centered flow experiences that fall more into the category of mystical experience than traditional learning experience. Further understanding of numinous encounters in museums can help museum practitioners make intentional choices about objects, design, and format that can serve to stimulate, connect, and inspire our museum audiences.

Abstract: Educators, docents, and interpreters are considered integral to the learning experiences at many museums. Although there is growing recognition that these staff members need professional development to effectively support visitor learning, there has been little research to describe their work or identify effective facilitation strategies. To address this need, we explored the nature of unstructured staff-facilitated family learning at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in Portland, OR, videotaping and inductively analyzing 65 unstructured staff-family interactions. The analysis highlighted the importance of role negotiation between staff and adult family members, particularly during the initiation of interactions, staff and visitor facilitation of family learning, and the introduction of new learning goals by staff members. Aligned with prior research on family learning in museums, adult family members played a critical role in shaping the nature of the interactions and determining the lev...

Abstract: This summative evaluation, conducted in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China, studied whether participation in a conservation education camp positively changed 8–12-year-old children's (a) knowledge of how to protect animals, (b) care about animals, (c) propensity for environmental and wildlife stewardship, and (d) compassionate behavior toward animals and nature. Influenced by conservation psychology, social learning theory, empathy and moral development, constructivism, and conservation biology, 5-day overnight camps were conducted at 2 zoological institutions. Activities were designed to help children form bonds with animals and care enough to positively change their behavior toward animals and nature. Mixed methods, using pre- and postvisit surveys, researcher field notes, vignettes, student journals, an end of camp questionnaire, and a camper behavior ethogram, revealed significant increases in knowledge, care, and propensity for action, and an additional theme, empathy. This study identified ef...

Abstract: Visitors who exhibit place attachment often demonstrate greater concern regarding how a place is managed. However, the extent to which the dimensions of attachment are related to management preferences has not been sufficiently investigated. Place attachment of visitors to coastal campsites along the southern Ningaloo coastline of northwestern Australia and its relation with management preferences were examined via an onsite survey. The relation was investigated using a suite of routines in the non-parametric multivariate statistics package PRIMER v6, providing the first example of the use of these types of statistical approaches in place research. Place attachment was measured using the dimensions of Place Identity, Place Dependence, and Everybody's Happy (a new, affective-based dimension). Within each dimension, significantly different groups of visitors were identified based on differences in their responses to the place attachment survey items. This was achieved using hierarchical agglomerati...

Abstract: The works of Edward Robinson and Arthur Melton conducted in the 1920s and 1930s are often cited but rarely read. The focus of this article is on one of Melton's (1935) classic visitor studies, re-examined in terms of several explanatory mechanisms including a decision-making model of visitor attention. Melton varied the number of paintings in a gallery from 6 to 36 in increments of 6. As the number of paintings increased, the proportion of paintings actually viewed decreased; however, the average viewing time per painting remained constant. Melton's findings of decreased attention are discussed in terms of four possible explanations: fatigue, object satiation, perceptual distraction, and selective choice. Although fatigue, satiation, and distraction have been frequently discussed in the visitor literature, selective choice has not. The implications of the attention-value model for selective choice is described in light of Melton's study.

Abstract: Art museums have long been identified as bastions of social and cultural exclusion. This conclusion was best evidenced by the large-scale 1967 French study by Bourdieu and Darbel demonstrating the exclusionary nature of The Love of Art. However, in recent years there have been increasing efforts to reach out to a broader range of visitors beyond conventional audiences. The present study investigates the impacts of an outreach program at a U.K. art museum, which sought to engage socially excluded young mothers. This study uses ethnographic research methods on a longitudinal basis to develop qualitative insights about the program seeking to mitigate cultural exclusion. Although the study's findings uphold many longstanding critiques of art museums’ conventional approaches, the study also indicates that carefully designed outreach activities can overcome such limitations and enhance cultural engagement. Thus, art museums’ limited appeal is tied to problematic public engagement practices that can be ...

Abstract: Zoos have the potential to help families recreate in nearby natural areas, increasing the likelihood of children playing in nature. The Paws On Children's Exhibit at Brevard Zoo (Melbourne, FL) was designed to provide a fun, educational children's play environment and to increase familiarity with and encourage family visits to the local upland and estuarine ecosystems. In this article, the authors explore through observation and survey data how children's play at a zoo exhibit can influence parents’ knowledge, perceptions, and intention to visit nearby natural areas. Survey responses reveal that adults believe the exhibit allows children to play in a more educational and imaginative manner than typical play. Most adult respondents are very satisfied with their experience at the exhibit and report increased knowledge of and interest in visiting local natural areas with their family.

Abstract: Before buying this worthwhile edited volume, it helps to be clear about two things: 1. From the title “Putting Theory Into Practice,” one might expect this book to be a translation of academic rese...

Abstract: The oceans are crucial for human survival, yet they are under serious threat from humans, for example through overfishing and poor waste management. We investigated two questions. First, does a leisure visit to an aquarium improve visitor attitudes and intentions towards marine sustainability, specifically regarding overfishing and pollution? Second, does an information booklet handed out in addition to the visit have additional measurable impact? Aquarium visitors (n = 104) completed a questionnaire on marine sustainability attitudes and behavioral intentions before and after their visit. Half of the visitors also were given informational materials that offered behavioral solutions to the problem of overfishing. The aquarium visit significantly improved visitors’ overall attitudes and intentions. The information booklet additionally improved intentions significantly, but not attitudes. These findings show that a visit to an aquarium can help individuals develop what we term a marine mindset, a state of readiness to address marine sustainability issues. Implications, limitations, and ideas for further research are discussed.

Abstract: What is learning anyway? is a statement we hear frequently in museum circles. People working from a paradigm where learning is equated with factual recall often find themselves disclaiming learning...

Abstract: What is the cognitive and emotional nature of fascination? Drawing on theories of cognitive and emotional interest, we explored the nature of visitor fascination (i.e., intense interest) at two High North museums in Norway. In Study 1, we found interesting and informative patterns related to which museum displays 20 teenage visitors experienced as particularly fascinating and why, along with the cognitive and affective qualities associated with those fascinations. We pursued these findings in more detail with 60 new visitors in Study 2. Through path modeling we were then able to capture the dynamics of when each of the following variables mattered to museum display experiences and in what ways: (1) display-relevant prior knowledge and interest, (2) the cognitive accessibility and emotional pleasure of museum display experiences, and (3) cognitive and affective interest outcomes. Implications for theories of interest and future research for exhibit design are discussed.

Abstract: This article examines the interaction between visitor motivation and in-museum visitor behavior. The authors postulate that, in order to understand this aspect of the dynamics of museum visiting, we need to view the motivations to visit the museum as lists compiled by individual visitors but also as part of wider lists of reasons for visiting that exist in society—which they refer to as cultural itineraries. Self-report methods have been used to capture patterns of motivation that emerge across the data, which in this case were used to examine their relation to visit strategies as manifested by visitor pathways through the London Zoo. Visitor pathways were captured through the novel use of mobile location-sensing technology which offers distinct opportunities in this context that have been unexplored in audience research. The combination of standard research methodology and automated location tracking used in this study allowed us to indentify two distinct visit strategies that directly relate to...

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to develop a new method for analyzing learning experiences in science centers and to explore the method's applicability The authors have developed a tool, context diagram of learning experience (CoDiLE), that allows them to illustrate the relationship between a visitor's learning with a science exhibit and the various contextual factors present in the science center CoDiLE illustrates contextual factors within three context categories (personal, sociocultural, and physical) that may affect a visitor's learning with science exhibits and shows how the contextual factors are linked to each other and to cognitive or affective learning CoDiLE's applicability was explored through case studies of 3 middle-school students who visited 3 science centers in Seoul, Korea The case study showed that contextual factors could affect learning either positively or negatively depending on the links that they made with other factors In addition, distinctive patterns of contextual f