Author: Acevedo, Salvador and Madara, Monique

Publication Year: 2015

Media Type: Report

Summary:

The fast growth of the Latino population in the United States is a well-known fact, but most museums acknowledge that this growth is not reflected among their audiences. An in-depth understanding of the Latino experience in museums can help provide institutions with the foundation for strategic planning that supports long-term sustainability. This exploratory research study attempts to understand the drivers of engagement and the underlying factors that permeate the experience of Latinos at museums—any type of museum—with the goal of helping organizations to design experiences that are engaging and relevant for this important growing population.

Abstract:

The fast growth of the Latino population in the Unit - ed States is a well-known fact, but most museums ac - knowledge that this growth is not reflected among their audiences. According to the National Endowment for the Arts’s Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA, the nation’s largest population survey of arts par - ticipation trends), cultural participation among Latinos is slowly growing. For example, the 2013 SPPA report shows that 14.5% of adults who visited an art museum identify as Latinos—an increase of just 0.2% from the 2008 report. Even though there are many general de - mographic studies about the participation of Latinos and other minority groups in museums and the arts (SPPA/NEA, 2013; Farrell, B. & Medvedeva, M., 2010; In- stitute of Museum and Library Services, 2008), there are few studies that focus specifically on the perceptions, motivations, and values of this population associated with museums and other cultural institutions (Betan- court, 2012; MPAC, 2008). Contemporanea’s primary motivation in conducting this study is to contribute to the field of museums and cultural institutions by deep - ening the discussion of audience diversification.

An in-depth understanding of the Latino experience in museums can help provide institutions with the foun- dation for strategic planning that supports long-term sustainability. This exploratory research study attempts to understand the drivers of engagement and the un- derlying factors that permeate the experience of Lati- nos at museums—any type of museum—with the goal of helping organizations to design experiences that are engaging and relevant for this important growing pop - ulation 1 . While there are important distinctions among the different types of museums that need to be consid- ered, our analysis focuses on commonalities and shared insights. Additional research and analysis may be useful in building on this research and highlighting those dif- ferences. Furthermore, while this study focuses on mu- seums, its implications are broader in reach and likely relevant for the cultural participation field in general. [Introduction, p. 1]

Arts & Intersections:

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