From the Social Museum to the Digital Social Museum

Main topic / subject: The goal of the article is to organize the conceptual evolution between the social museum and the digital social museum, a fundamental conceptual change that will imply a different form of management and that considers the latest technologies applied to the museum experience. Logical development of the subject: For the development of this conceptual proposal, the paper starts from a series of fundamental texts that describe the current situation of experience management in museums; it carries out a critical review of the concepts of the traditional museum and the social museum and with data and examples the paper proposes the use of the concept of the digital social museum. Author’s point of view and contributions: The article contributes to the definition of the digital social museum. It expands the concept of the social museum and gives a fundamental value to the impact of new technologies and social networks as an integral part of the museum experience and management. Implications and conclusions: Museum institutions should work in a much more inclusive and participatory manner, thus giving way to an evolution that begins in the early twentieth century and is called the social museum. New technologies offer great potential for the achievement of these goals of participation and dialogue, leading to a new concept of the digital social museum. Through this paper we reflect on how new technologies contribute to understand museum management under the principles of the digital social museum.