TOURISTS’ SATISFACTION IN MALAYSIA’S CULTURAL MUSEUMS: KEY ELEMENTS THAT CAPTIVE TOURISTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55197/qjssh.v6i3.662Keywords:
cultural museum, tourist satisfaction, tourist experience, experience economyAbstract
Cultural museums play a vital role in preserving a nation’s heritage, fostering cultural exchange, and stimulating tourism. Malaysia, renowned for its rich and diverse cultural heritage, has established numerous cultural museums showcasing the nation's multifaceted history, traditions, and art forms. However, there has been a noticeable decline in visitor numbers to Malaysia's cultural museums, a trend largely influenced by the experiences visitors have during their visits. This study focuses on examining most appreciated element from the tourists' experiences at Malaysia’s cultural museums by analyzing their perceptions of various spatial components within the museums. Data was collected from 381 respondents via a questionnaire survey, with statements addressing four key elements: education, escape, aesthetics, and entertainment. Survey results reveal that the aesthetic element was the most appreciated by respondents, while the escape element was the least valued. A significant portion of the respondents were from younger age groups, which tend to have a strong appreciation for aesthetics. Conversely, nearly a third of respondents visited museums for work-related purposes, contributing to entertainment being the least appreciated element.
References
[1] Abdullah, N.S.C., Rahman, N.H.A. (2022): Tourist satisfaction and revisit intention towards the local food heritage in Kelantan. – Asian Journal of Arts, Culture and Tourism 4(3): 14-22.
[2] Ab Rahman, S.A., Abdullah, A., Mohmad Zaki, M.I., Abu Bakar, A., Abdul Majid, N.H. (2025): An Investigation of Tourist Satisfaction in Malaysia Cultural Museum: Indoor Space Experience. – Planning Malaysia 23(1): 303-318.
[3] Abu Bakar, M.S. bin, Zulkifli, M.A.H. bin, Harun, K.N. binti, Shuki, M.S.B.M. (2020): Exploring Digital Platforms, Cultural Tourism and Online Learning of Museums Worldwide. – International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences 10(6): 633-642.
[4] Amir, S., Mohamed Osman, M., Bachok, S., Ibrahim, M. (2014): Understanding of Tourists’ Preferences Pattern: A Study in Melaka, Malaysia. – Planning Malaysia 3: 81-94.
[5] Annechini, C., Menardo, E., Hall, R., Pasini, M. (2020): Aesthetic Attributes of Museum Environmental Experience: A Pilot Study With Children as Visitors. – Frontiers in Psychology 11: 16p.
[6] Bates, S., Ferri, A.J. (2010): What's entertainment? Notes toward a definition. – Studies in Popular Culture 33(1): 1-20.
[7] Bachok, S., Tuan Mohd Amin, T.A., Ab Rahman, S.A. (2018): In Pursuit of Economically Competitive Agro-Tourism Sector: The Case of Terengganu Homestay, Malaysia. – Planning Malaysia 16(2): 164-174.
[8] Chin, C., Swatman, P., Swatman, P. (2005): The Virtual Shopping Experience: using virtual presence to motivate online shopping. – Australasian Journal of Information Systems 13(1): 239-253.
[9] Evans, R., Kurantowicz, E., Lucio-Villegas, E. (2022): Remaking communities and adult learning: Social and community-based learning, new forms of knowledge and action for change. – Brill 280p.
[10] Forgan, S. (2005): Building the Museum. – Isis 96(4): 572-585.
[11] Gurian, E.H. (2006): Civilizing the museum: The collected writings of Elaine Heumann Gurian. – Routledge 217p.
[12] Güzel, F.Ö. (2014): The Dimensions of Tour Experience, Emotional Arousal, and Post-experience Behaviors: A Research on Pamukkale in Turkey. – Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences 150: 521-530.
[13] Herron, A., Jamieson, A. (2020): Grandfathers at Melbourne Museum: Shining a spotlight on overlooked museum visitors. – Visitor Studies 23(2): 101-119.
[14] Li, P. (2024): Cultural communication in museums: A perspective of the visitors experience. – PLoS ONE 19(5): 1-29.
[15] Lin, D., Simmons, D. (2017): Structured inter-network collaboration: Public participation in tourism planning in Southern China. – Tourism Management 63: 315-328.
[16] Mayo, E. (1975): Tourism and the national parks: A psychographic and attitudinal study. – Journal of Travel Research 14(1): 14-21.
[17] Mehmetoglu, M., Engen, M. (2011): Pine and Gilmore’s Concept of Experience Economy and Its Dimensions: An Empirical Examination in Tourism. – Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality and Tourism 12(4): 237-255.
[18] Packer, J., Bond, N. (2010): Museums as Restorative Environments. – Curator: The Museum Journal 53(4): 421-436.
[19] Pahrudin, P., Chen, C.T., Liu, L.W. (2021): A modified theory of planned behavioral: A case of tourist intention to visit a destination post pandemic Covid-19 in Indonesia. – Heliyon 7(10): 15p.
[20] Pine, B.J., Gilmore, J.H. (1998): Welcome to the Experience Economy. – Harvard Business Review 76(4): 97-105.
[21] Pinto, G., Pizzo, M., Pongetti, C., Prosperi, A., Pupino, A.R., Quattrociocchi, B., Renna, M., Pinelli, O.R., Sciullo, G., Simunic, M., Stopponi, S., Tamma, M., Vitali, S. (2014): Il capitale culturale. – Journal of the Section of Cultural Heritage 10: 1-30.
[22] Qin, Y., Liu, J., Wang, R., Qi, X., Jiang, S., Li, J., Guo, P., Wu, Q. (2022): Can leisure and entertainment lifestyle promote health among older people living alone in China? A simultaneous equation approach. – Frontiers in Public Health 10: 14p.
[23] Rana, P.S., Singh, R.P. (2004): Behavioural Perspective of Pilgrims and Tourists in Banaras (Kashi), India. – The Tourist-A Psychological Perspective 20p.
[24] Sandahl, J. (2019): The Museum Definition as the Backbone of ICOM. – Museum International 71(1-2): 1-9.
[25] Trion, E. (2023): La place du fonctionnement affectif dans l’expérience muséale. Les Cahiers de l’École du Louvre. – Recherches en Histoire de l’art, Histoire des Civilisations, Archéologie, Anthropologie et Museology 151p.
[26] Van Aalst, I., Boogaarts, I. (2002): From Museum to Mass Entertainment. – European Urban and Regional Studies 9(3): 195-209.
[27] Yu, X., Kim, N., Chen, C.C., Schwartz, Z. (2012): Are you a tourist? Tourism definition from the tourist perspective. – Tourism Analysis 17(4): 445-457.
[28] Yusof, Y.B., Amin, A., Abidin, Z. (2013): Rural Tourism in Malaysia: A Homestay Program. – China-USA Business Review 12(3): 7p.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 MUHAMMAD IRHAM MOHMAD ZAKIR, SYAKIR AMIR AB RAHMAN, ALIAS ABDULLAH, UMAR MANSYUR, NOR NADIAH NAJIB, HITOSHI NAKAMURA
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
