Communication and Education at Museums in Castille and León: Digital habits in a crossroad revolution

Abstract

Our research article presents an original contribution to the complex field of museum audience studies from the perspective of communication and education. There exists a clear relevance in the analysis of ICT in the audience-visitor's behavior habits, their actions, opinions and evaluations. We live in a digitized society where these technologies are the prime medium and channel for our interactions, this process also takes place at museums. In this context, the Internet and digital applications are the key for museums to properly implement their communication and their relationship with the public; and therefore, it is essential to understand the impact that these tools have on visitors and their interaction. We have been able to provide a series of key conclusions in this 3.0 communication scenario where the museum audience is. Along our research we observe and detect how the use of social networks, the website and virtual reality has to be consistent with the museum's function as an educational and communicative space. The website is a key piece both for generic information and for building an interactive educational guide aimed at all types of audiences, children, young people or adults, through the inclusion of multiple tools provided by the hypermedia environment. The public of the museums of Castille and León considers the informative task of the museums as a determining factor, but according to the results, little interest is detected in the informative resources aimed at the age group under 24 years. The younger audience is less satisfied and cared for in their audiovisual demands and needs. Therefore, from the museum perspective it is necessary to bet on an inclusive digital educative and communicative perspective that increases the impact on the audience and allows a more participatory dialogue with the public of the museums in our cultural environment. For this reason, from the museum cultural sector it is necessary to bet on an inclusive digital and communication strategy that increases the impact on the audience and allows a more participatory dialogue with the museum public. Museums must bet on attracting and retaining new audiences including cultural instruments so deeply rooted in the cultural practices of their visitors, their smartphones and social networks. The data obtained in this research (see Table 1) take as a reference the opinions of a sample of 619 people, the majority being women with an age range between 15 to 44 years, of Spanish nationality, residing in a province of the Autonomous Community of Castille and León and with higher education.