The Positive Side of Eliciting Negative Emotions: Survey Results of Visitor Responses to a Library Exhibit

Keywords

emotions, libraries, exhibition design, library exhibits, patron experience

Abstract

Eliciting emotions, particularly uncomfortable emotions, through exhibition design can have a positive impact on the patrons’ reception of the exhibition. In this study, patrons visiting an exhibition designed to create a dark and macabre atmosphere were given an exit survey asking them to identify and rate the intensity of the emotions they felt during the experience. The survey also assessed visitor likelihood of returning to view the exhibition again. In general, visitors who recorded feeling negative emotions while viewing the exhibition were significantly more likely to visit multiple times than those who did not.

Original Publication Citation

Frost, M., Towne-Anderson, C., & Ferguson, K. (2019). The Positive Side of Eliciting Negative Emotions: Survey Results of Visitor Responses to a Library Exhibit. RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Cultural Heritage, 20(2), 84. https://doi.org/10.5860/rbm.20.2.84

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2019-12-01

Permanent URL

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/8104

Publisher

Association of College and Research Libraries

Language

English

College

Harold B. Lee Library

University Standing at Time of Publication

Associate Professor

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