Museums & Society 2034 is a report from Centre for the Future of Museums, it covers a wide range of issues which Museums will face over the next few decades.
One of the findings which especially interested me was the change in the way that people want to experience stories. The report suggests that people under the age of thirty want to be part of the story, ‘A key factor has been the expansion of video gaming, now approaching almost universal consumption by American teens. And gaming is now more likely to be about the user as protagonist, driving the narrative.’
The report goes on to say that children and educational publisher Scholastic have shifted several of their titles towards ‘enabling the reader to serve as the protagonist through websites and games that extend the experience with readers driving their experiences with the book series.’
This evolution of museum visitors from spectators to active participants mirrors the changes that we have seen in the expectations of audiences online, especially in the under thirty age group and it could be that the exciting ways in which people are connecting with museums online increasingly crosses over in to the physical museum.
You can download the whole Museums & Society 2034 report here.
