Measuring the Representation Effect: A Mixed-Methods Study of the Diversification of Museum Collections

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session 1
  In Roundtable Session: Family and Community Involvement in Education: Anticolonial and Equity-Centered Approaches

Abstract

The purpose of this fully integrated mixed methods grounded theory study is to understand a growing trend, that of diversifying the representation of artists in collections of art museum. The research presented here used a grounded theory approach to uncover a theory on how the experience of aesthetic emotions may be impacted by knowledge about the artists’ gender or racial identity in individuals who are viewing visual art in an art museum. For art viewers who share identities with artists who are typically underrepresented in art museums, knowledge about an underrepresented artists’ identity will significantly impact their emotions. Additionally all participants can be strongly impacted by seeing underrepresented artists if they have a critical understanding of history.

Author

• Alysha Meloche, Drexel University