This report is part of a study that produces up-to-date and reliable information on audiences for DGPC museums, including social profiles and cultural practices, the relationship with museums, expectations, evaluations and suggestions arising from the visit. It aims to promote knowledge and the search for new responses to the challenges that audiences are posing to many museum institutions as a result of the strong impact of tourism. This is a pioneering study in Portugal from several points of view: the number of participating museums, the comparative perspective adopted and the duration of the observation (12 months).
The report pertains to the Soares dos Reis National Museum and focuses on integrating visitor feedback to enhance decision-making processes in museums. It analyses a corpus of 506 valid responses, with 61% from foreigners, using the Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis (CAQDAS) method. The analysis follows Leavy’s five-phase approach, emphasising data preparation, initial immersion, coding, categorization, and interpretation. The study identifies 18 thematic codes, with a majority of opinions and suggestions from museum visitors.
Visitors express a desire for more informative materials in various languages, particularly related to museography. Suggestions include providing additional support materials like brochures or guides to enhance understanding of museum content. Visitors also highlight the need for more explanatory texts on artworks, art movements, and historical contexts to enrich the visitor experience.
The study’s dissemination involved creating a visual identity, informing visitors about the research, and distributing multilingual information materials.
The findings emphasise the significance of detailed analysis and draw conclusions specific to the Soares dos Reis National Museum, with comparisons to overall study results. Visitor feedback underscores the importance of clear, accessible language in support materials and the value of additional historical context to enrich the museum experience.
