New Methods for Measuring Shared and Divergent Visitor Experience: A Pilot Study at the Royal College of Music Museum

We report on a new method for anonymously measuring shared and divergent museum visitor reactions to specific content of exhibits, going beyond more general standardized evaluations of overall experience. In a small pilot study, six visitors reported three things that had most struck them about their visit, and they later rated the extent to which they agreed with other visitors’ anonymized reports. The method reveals which objects generate more and less attention and interpretive consensus and the extent to which visitors understand museum content as curators hope. It also allows assessment of which museum materials (display text, audio, video, tour script) contribute to visitors’ commentary and how differently different kinds of visitors experience the museum. Expanded versions of this method could inform iterative exhibit development, and interactive representations of data sets like that collected here could allow exhibit designers and curators to gain insight into visitor experience from alternate perspectives.