Sustainability, economic value and socio-cultural impacts of museums: a theoretical proposition of a research method

ABSTRACT

Museums need to apply sustainable criteria in order to evaluate performance and improve results. This paper aims to determine a methodological model that allows the analysis of the economic and socio-cultural value of museums. The approach proposed is related to the local community and tourist’s perception. The research supports the conclusion that both the Choice Experiments method and the Subjective Quality Indicators are methods of interest for evaluating the functioning of museums. Therefore, the proposed methodological model takes a mixed-method approach by considering both. The application of the proposed method makes it possible to know precisely the impact of the initiatives and proposals developed by museums. This method can be extrapolated and used by the scientific community to do research in the performance of museums and the process of decision-making.

KEYWORDS:

• Sustainability
• cultural economy
• museums
• choice experiments
• management indicators

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Ms Alicia Orea-Giner is Professor at the Rey Juan Carlos University in the Department of Business Economics. Ph.D Candidate in Tourism at the Rey Juan Carlos University and in Geography at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne.

Dr Carmen De-Pablos-Heredero is Professor in Business Administration Area at Rey Juan Carlos University in Madrid (URJC).

Dr Trinidad Vacas-Guerrero is Professor in Tourist Resources at Rey Juan Carlos University in Madrid (URJC).