The effects of library digital curation integrating virtual and physical contexts through mixed reality on learning performance and motivation

Purpose Digital curation in libraries enables learners to engage in richer, more immersive and interactive experiences than traditional physical curation, leveraging diverse media resources and interactive technologies. However, few studies have explored innovative digital curation approaches that integrate immersive and gamified technologies to enhance curatorial learning performance and motivation. To create a more effective digital curation approach than traditional physical curation, this study developed a Mixed Reality Digital Curation System (MRDCS) that integrates curated content with gamified learning through clue collection and task challenges in a blended virtual-physical environment to enhance learners' performance and motivation. Design/methodology/approach This study employed a true experimental design, with 26 university students participating in the Fang Hao Special Exhibition. The experimental group consisted of 13 participants who used the MRDCS within a blended virtual-physical curation environment, while the control group comprised 13 participants who engaged in self-guided viewing in a physical curation environment. Findings Results show that MRDCS learners, especially those with low prior knowledge, achieved significantly better learning performance than the control group. Additionally, MRDCS learners – regardless of high or low prior knowledge – demonstrated significantly higher learning motivation, including value and expectation dimensions. These findings highlight the potential of MR-enhanced digital curation, incorporating gamified mechanisms, to foster effective learning in exhibition settings. Research limitations/implications This study yields several valuable research findings; however, it has a limitation in that the sample size is small due to the challenges of experimentation, primarily caused by the limited availability of high-cost HoloLens 2 equipment. This limitation affects the statistical power of the study. However, the external validity of this study is still maintained to some extent, as the study employs a true experimental design with randomly selected and representative research subjects. Practical implications This study demonstrates that integrating Mixed Reality (MR) with digital curation creates a powerful blended virtual-physical learning environment that significantly enhances both learning performance and motivation. Practitioners in education, museum curation and exhibition design can adopt the MRDCS to provide immersive, interactive and gamified experiences that actively engage learners. Originality/value This study is original in its design and focus on blending digital curation with MR and gamified learning in an integrated virtual-physical context – an area with limited prior research. The development and empirical testing of the MRDCS provide a novel contribution by combining digital media, immersive technology and game-based tasks to enhance curatorial learning.