The Museums Association (MA) has commissioned research into public attitudes to the purpose of museums and their role in society.
The research, which will be project managed by independent consultant Sara Selwood, will take place over the next three months.
The project will ask questions such as: which roles carried out by museums do people perceive as most credible, relevant and important; whether museums should focus on the past from a certain distance or engage with contemporary issues; whether museums should be sources of authoritative knowledge or places for debate; whether the core role of museums is long-term preservation or serving today’s users; and the extent to which museums are regarded as trustworthy.
The results will inform the MA’s Museums 2020 initiative, which is developing a vision of the kinds of impacts that museums can have on society, communities and individuals.
The research project has received funding from Arts Council England, Museums Galleries Scotland and CyMAL: Museums, Archives and Libraries Wales.
MA head of policy Maurice Davies said: “I hope that the research will help museums understand more about what their audiences and communities expect of them.
“It will help the MA develop the next version of Museums 2020, which we plan to issue in the summer.”
The research, which will be project managed by independent consultant Sara Selwood, will take place over the next three months.
The project will ask questions such as: which roles carried out by museums do people perceive as most credible, relevant and important; whether museums should focus on the past from a certain distance or engage with contemporary issues; whether museums should be sources of authoritative knowledge or places for debate; whether the core role of museums is long-term preservation or serving today’s users; and the extent to which museums are regarded as trustworthy.
The results will inform the MA’s Museums 2020 initiative, which is developing a vision of the kinds of impacts that museums can have on society, communities and individuals.
The research project has received funding from Arts Council England, Museums Galleries Scotland and CyMAL: Museums, Archives and Libraries Wales.
MA head of policy Maurice Davies said: “I hope that the research will help museums understand more about what their audiences and communities expect of them.
“It will help the MA develop the next version of Museums 2020, which we plan to issue in the summer.”
