An Activity-Centered Design Perspective for the Creation of Museum Exhibits

Abstract

Approaching design as a flexible process with frameworks for understanding human behavior during exhibit development enables a comprehensive plan for achieving exhibit goals. An Activity-Centered Design Perspective for the Development of Museum Exhibits outlines theoretical design frameworks that support museum goals and responsibilities for the production of exhibit solutions that facilitate desired visitor experiences. The design community follows iterative processes that incorporate a strategic mix of tools for the creation of valuable and successful products and services. Because information and communication technologies are common for the presentation of exhibit messages, an approach to exhibit development that considers exhibit activities and technology and how they effect visitor experience is necessary. An exhibit development strategy with a design perspective frames critical exhibit activities for analyzing the contextual factors that influence visitor behavior and overall visitor experience. The museum industry has an opportunity to incorporate this design perspective to exhibit development as well as the creation of additional museum programs and events that have goals of increasing attendance and attracting a wider and more diverse audience.