The Cultural Value of Engaging with Museums and Galleries

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Whilst recent decades have produced a relatively consistent and compelling body of data around use and participation in museums and galleries - generating a degree of consensus amongst policymakers, funders and practitioners around demographic patterns and trends in visiting - there is much less consensus around what we know about the value of this engagement. Numerous studies (using a range of methods and shaped by a variety of motivations) have set out to describe, understand, measure and evidence what it is that people value about museum and gallery visiting, what benefits accrue from engagement and participation and what longer term impacts result from this engagement for individuals and society more broadly. However, there has been no systematic attempt to draw together and critically assess this body of research in order to build a clear understanding of what these diverse studies and approaches tell us, what gaps exist and what future research directions are needed. The proposed review addresses these long overdue questions to provide insights of value to policymakers, funders and practitioners.