In this paper, Donna Morganstern of Metropolitan State College of Denver discusses findings from two studies at Old Tucson, an old west theme park near Tucson, Arizona and one study at Plimoth Plantation, a recreated 1621 Pilgrim Village, Wampanoag homesite, and Mayflower replica in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Morganstern's research support hypotheses that themed environments influence visitors' conceptions of the past and attitudes toward the future, and that visitors perceive the past as a function of their own expectations and beliefs.
In this paper, Ruth S. Britt discusses front-end evaluation findings of the "In the Dark: Worlds without Light" traveling exhibit at the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History. The exhibit aimed to show that humans are not well-adapted to the dark, and that this gives rise to discomfort, fear, avoidance, and lack of knowledge; to take some of the mystery out of dark environments by showing and talking about creatures of darkness, their adaptations to dark environments, and the processes which make life possible in unlighted worlds; and to show how dark environments are tied to the whole of life
This paper describes findings from a study intended to improve the Confrontation Gallery at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. This remedial evaluation involved placing written text on the plexiglass photo panels that corresponded to the audi-recorded statements. Text placement was completed in two phases to asses the possibility that having written text on all panels would create competition for attention and result in less attention.
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Stephen BitgoodAnn CleghornAmy CotaMelody CrawfordDonald PattersonChris Danemeyer
In this paper, researchers from Science Learning, Inc. discuss findings from an evaluation study that used interpretive carts to analyze visitor conversations. Researchers collected data using the "Rock Talk" cart to inform the redesign of the Geology, Gems & Minerals Hall at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.
In this paper, David M. Simmons discusses how the ongoing, extensive research program at Old Sturbridge Village supports its exhibits and public presentations. In particular, Simmons describes research efforts that analyze how modern audiences interact and respond to this 19th century museum village.
In this paper, Margie Marino of the Denver Museum of Natural History discusses the value of museum maps and how her institution used evaluation to improve the design of a new hand-held map.
This paper describes the process researchers and staff used to improve wayfinding at the Minnesota History Center. The authors discuss findings from this research as well as general recommendations for helping visitors find their way around and make choices.
In this paper, David M. Simmons discusses visitor studies at Old Sturbridge Village. Simmons presents an overview of visitor evaluation projects throughout the history of the institution as well as how it has responded to the data collected about visitor demographics and preferences.
In this paper, evaluator Randi Korn presents findings from a front-end evaluation for a traveling exhibition about severe weather, developed through a collaboration among the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, National Museum of Natural History, St. Louis Science Center, and National Severe Storms Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. This article presents findings from the part of the evaluation that focused on differences between visitors to natural history museums and science centers, regarding demographic and group composition data as well as
In this paper, Sanford S. Shaman, of the Gallery of Art at the University of Haifa, discusses the spiritual void in contemporary art that accounts for the art's inability to communicate with visitors. Shaman describes how this lack of spiritual content renders much of today's art private and non-communicative in the eyes of many critics.
In this paper, Janet Kamien, former director of exhibits at the Field Museum and principal developer on the "Life Over Time" exhibit, Eric Gyllenhaal, primary developer for the exhibit, and Jeff Hayward, director of People, Places & Design Research and visitor researcher and evaluation advisor for the exhibit, present reflections on the process of creating "Life Over Time" and exhibits in general. These reflections include "Voices of Doom" or predictions of disaster that swirl in the heads of designers and developers as they build exhibits.
This report presents front-end evaluation findings at the North Carolina Transportation Museum. The study was conducted to assist with the formidable task of programming the 110,000-square-foot roadhouse and to provide data for researchers and exhibit designers. Front-end evaluation goals included: (1) determine if pre-existing or natural traffic flow patterns were present in the roundhouse; (2) evaluate visitor interest in proposed research topics; and (3) obtain visitor reactions, insights, attitudes and expectations concerning proposed roundhouse programming.