El giro hacia el visitante : un cambio de paradigma en el museo de la postmodernidadThe turn to the visitor : a paradigm shift in the museum of the postmodernity

Abstract

Since the last decades of the 20th century, the museum has undergone a significant transformation in its relationship with the visitor, who now occupies a central role in the institution's activity. This trend towards the prioritization of the visitor, known as the turn to the visitor, is the subject of this research, which aims to describe the fundamental aspects of the phenomenon by exploring its causes and repercussions. Taking as a starting point the work of Eilean Hooper-Greenhill, the most basic symptoms of the turn to the visitor are explored. Firstly, the rise of visitor studies and the evolution of their goals as well as the perspective and methodology from which they are approached. Next, the parallel development of visitor studies and mass media audience studies. Then, the transformation of the museum communication model, which reflects the paradigm shift in communication theory. And finally, the increased importance of the educational role of the museum, which also shows how the influence of different approaches to learning theory has changed the visitor concept and the museum-visitor relationship...