Spatial affordances and visitors’ behaviour: A case study in the Design Museum

As informal learning venues and anchors of urban public culture, the spatial configurations and exhibition activities of museums shape public engagement and interaction. However, the contribution of spatial configuration to visitor participation remains under-examined in design research. Taking the Design Museum (tDM) in London as a case study, this paper employs a mixed method combining space syntax with non-intrusive behavioural observation to quantify the relationship between spatial affordances and visitor participation. Based on an on-site empirical study, the paper presents how museum configurations influence visitor dwell times and social engagement. Findings indicate that key spatial variables, namely, integration, choice, and visual isovist, have no significant effect on visitor dwell time density or social interaction within exhibition spaces. Instead, exhibit type and seating density are proved to primarily drive visitor behaviour. These findings suggest that museums are not static spaces but dynamic modes of engagement, offering actionable implications for spatial design in urban cultural venues.