Title:
Museum Visit as a Communication Situation: Experience, Mediation and Meaning-making in Madagascar's Science Museums

Authors:
Mihaja RANDRIANJA* and Tianarisoa ANDRIAMANGA, Madagascar

Abstract:

This research examines the guided museum visit as a multi‑channel communication situation across two scientific and heritage museums in Madagascar. Drawing on ethnomethodology and semio‑contextual analysis, the study highlights the central role of cultural and educational mediation in articulating audiences' emotional engagement, cognitive understanding, and cultural identification. Based on questionnaires, semi‑structured interviews, and participant observation, the findings confirm the decisive influence of co‑constructing of meaning, of the poetic and expressive dimensions of scenography devices, and of identity references in shaping the quality of the visitor experience. This study concludes with operational recommendations to foster immersive, interactive, and participatory devices capable of establishing highly communicative mediation that attracts a new generation of visitors.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.51505/ijaemr.2025.1406