What makes a museum a good one?

S. E. Weil states in Making Museums Matter (2002), that people recognize a “good” museum under four evaluative criteria: purposiveness, capability, effectiveness, and efficiency; and of these various criteria effectiveness is the most difficult to evaluate and seems to many the only thing that really matters. The only way to measure effectiveness is to know the purpose for which the museum exists. If the effectiveness is thought to be achieved by a naïve visitor, the purpose (mission statement), and possibly capability and efficiency, is most likely thought to be achieved and appear seamless.

A few years back I went to the OMSI in Portland, and experienced great fun. We spent the whole day exploring, playing, and learning. This experience, in my opinion, would be a great example of a successful museum. I want to focus qualitatively on the effectiveness of the OMSI. To do this, I decided to write down a list of items I thought I would find in the OMSI mission statement before reading the mission statement online. The OMSI was educational at various age levels in regards to understanding science and technology, it engaged problem solving and included self –driven investigation in the discovery of how science works. These are the overarching themes I remember; and now, I can compare these themes with those of the OMSI mission statement in order to evaluate its effectiveness. The OMSI mission statement at www.omsi.edu reads:

“OMSI seeks to inspire wonder.
The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) is a scientific, educational, and cultural resource center dedicated to improving the public's understanding of science and technology. OMSI makes science exciting and relevant through exhibits, programs, and experiences that are presented in an entertaining and participatory fashion.”

Overall, yes, the museum was successful: the experience I remember at the OMSI coincides with its mission statement. The only problem with this evaluation is that I measured this after visiting the museum without knowing what to evaluate. I could have read the mission statement before entering the OMSI, and then, evaluate the museum, but I think this retrospective approach was more realistic because most visitors are unaware of the formal goals of the museum. Naïve visitors, like myself, can help gauge the effectiveness of a museum by not knowing the purpose. The museum staff can take advantage of this situation to evaluate visitors’ perspectives of the museum and compare it to the mission statement. If they do not coincide, the museum should take a step back and start from the top with the museum’s purpose.