Understanding Museum Experience from the Perspectives of Embodied Cognition and Multisensory Design

Abstract

This study aims to delve into the exploration of users’ direct experiences in museums from the perspectives of embodied cognition theory and multisensory design within the context of the experience economy. Embodied cognition challenges traditional cognitive theories by emphasizing the direct involvement of the body in cognition, while also highlighting the coupling effects among cognition, behavior, and the environment. Multisensory design predominantly focuses on head-based senses, overlooking the significance of bodily and trunk sensations. Employing bodily maps as research tools, the study conducted qualitative analysis and investigations on twelve visitors to the National Museum of Korea using autoethnography and sensory ethnography methods. By organizing focus groups and one-on-one interviews, participants’ bodily experiences were captured, and sensory perceptions were visually documented. The novelty of this study lies in utilizing bodily maps as a methodological tool derived from ethnographic design to capture users’ most direct bodily and perceptual experiences. The analysis revealed cross-modal sensory phenomena among visitors and underscored the crucial role of touch in information processing and cognition. It is hoped that through this research, museum professionals will pay greater attention to multisensory design, mutual support and coordination among different senses, and environmental information design in future exhibition planning and design processes. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2025.