Siyi Wang
Xuedan Gong
Wenting Lian- 1Department of Archaeology and Museology, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China
- 2Aurora Museum, Shanghai, China
Rising mental health challenges among Chinese youth necessitate new intervention models. This study explores the mechanisms of museotherapy workshops in regulating emotions and fostering self-discovery among university students, aiming to validate museums as therapeutic environments. Structured workshops were conducted at the Shanghai University Museum involving 81 students aged 17–22. By integrating Appraisal Theory and narrative therapy, the study employed a mixed-methods approach—utilizing text sentiment analysis (SPSSAU) and facial expression coding (FAST)—to evaluate participant responses to specific “healing objects.” Text analysis revealed a predominantly positive emotional shift (83.33% positive), identifying museum objects as the primary emotional triggers (accounting for 69.5% of perception statements). Furthermore, video analysis identified a characteristic “W-shaped” emotion curve, mapping the participant journey from initial engagement to deep reflection and distinct positive resolution. These findings validate museotherapy as an effective method for anxiety alleviation, operating through mechanisms of sensory stimulation, psychological resonance, and dialogue. Consequently, this research offers a robust framework for evaluating the emotional impact of museum interventions.
1 Introduction
As the pressure in modern society grows, young people’s mental health problems are becoming increasingly prominent, and there is a trend toward younger age groups. According to the “China Mental and Psychological Health Report” (China National Narcotic Drugs Association, 2023), the depression risk among individuals aged 18–24 reaches as high as 24.1%, ranking first among all age groups. Among university students, the risk of mild anxiety is 38.26%, mild depression is 16.54%, and severe depression is 4.94% (China National Narcotic Drugs Association, 2023). Since the COVID-19 pandemic, a substantial increase in the prevalence of affective disorders, for example, a 27% increase in depressive disorders and a 25% increase in anxiety disorders (Santomauro et al., 2021), as well as other mental health burdens, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (e.g., Wathelet et al., 2021), insomnia and distress (Wu et al., 2021), and chronic pain (Clauw et al., 2020), has been reported (Daniali et al., 2023). Three-quarters of mental health problems emerge before the age of 25, but people aged 16–24 years constitute the age group that is least likely to seek help (Andrews et al., 2001; Olfson and Klerman, 1992). The mental health of students has increasingly become a significant concern for major universities (Li et al., 2025). As the focus on student mental health gains momentum, the unique value and potential of museums, particularly university museums as campus-based cultural institutions, in responding to such issues are becoming increasingly evident and demanded.
For centuries, individuals have sought museums, including outdoor spaces such as gardens, for solace and rejuvenation. These institutions were seen as a way to escape, for a period of time, the stressors of daily life (Ghadim and Daugherty, 2021). Ongoing research has confirmed that museums are categorized as restorative environments (Kaplan, 1995), and Deane et al. (2000) argue that the environment and space of museums have transformed into more social and inclusive platforms, placing greater emphasis on public education and services, and gradually emerging as a popular space for art therapy. In current healing practices, the use of museum objects is categorized into four primary approaches: verbal exchange, kinetic experiences and activities, connecting by making in galleries, and multisensory experiences (Dejkameh et al., 2018). Thus, museums have a unique ability to alleviate mental health challenges (Clow and Fredhoi, 2006; Sone et al., 2007).
Museotherapy (also known as museum therapy or object-based therapy) is a form of therapeutic intervention that uses encounters with museum objects and collections—such as artworks, historical artifacts, scientific specimens, or cultural items—within a museum or cultural setting to promote psychological, emotional, and social well-being. It is developed through the intervention and fusion of art therapy (Bondil and Legari, 2022; Chatterjee et al., 2009; Cull and Cull, 2022; Ioannides, 2016; Mangione, 2018). Early museum art therapy activities were mostly auxiliary treatments for physiological therapy (Wang et al., 2025). In 2018, the American Association of Museums emphasized 10 areas in which museums contributed to health care (American Alliance of Museums, 2013). The activities are often conducted for individuals suffering from psychological issues, mental disorders, cancer, anorexia, bulimia, post-surgery recovery, children with autism, and elderly people with age-related conditions (Table 1).
Table 1. Museum-based art therapy (MBAT) population(s) served.
In this context, museums may have additional functions, other than preserving and displaying cultural heritage. They may operate as centers of emotional experience that tap into their inherent potential for psychological healing. Thus, in 2023, we held 11 museotherapy workshops (Figure 1) at the Shanghai University Museum for university students aged 17–22 years. In this study, using videos recorded during the museotherapy workshop, along with the SPSSAU text emotion analysis tool,1 the expressions, behaviors, and interview dialogues of young participants were thoroughly analyzed through the methods of narrative-based dialogue framework and emotional evaluation. This approach examined their engagement in the workshop, offering valuable insights into the supportive effects of museotherapy workshops on young visitors.
Figure 1. Workflow of the museotherapy workshops at the Shanghai University Museum.
2 Museum visitors’ emotional experience and analysis methods
The “museum fatigue” studies led by Robinson (1928) and Melton (1972) focused on examining the impact of museum environments on visitors’ behaviors. These studies significantly contributed to the development of observation as a key research method in museology. Meanwhile, the interdisciplinary integration of fields such as marketing and psychology introduced a broader range of research methods into visitor studies (Ceccarelli et al., 2024; Ferilli et al., 2016; Kılıçarslan et al., 2024; Pearce, 2009; Wells, 2014). This shift helped transition the focus of visitor research from solely “serving the museum” to placing greater emphasis on the inner experiences and emotional responses of individuals. The Museum Experience (Dierking and Falk, 1992) highlights the pivotal role of context in shaping learning, particularly within and through museums, which encompasses the totality of the experience, from the moment the thought occurs to someone that visiting a museum might be a good idea, through the visit itself, to the recollection of the experience days, weeks, and even years later (Falk and Dierking, 2016). Packer and Ballantyne (2016) define the visitor experience as a “subjective response,” emphasizing that it emerges from the dynamic interaction between an individual’s internal and external environments. From this perspective, “experience” refers to a person’s mood and internal changes, which involve personal cognitive, esthetic, emotional, and even spiritual levels. The visitor experience is a significant focus of visitor studies; however, within the complex concept of “experience,” the educational role of museums has traditionally been emphasized. Consequently, visitor studies have often prioritized cognitive aspects while overlooking emotional dimensions. Previous studies on museum visitors’ emotions have primarily explored various aspects, including the emotional factors influencing visitors’ learning experiences within museums (Anderson, 1989), the motivations driving individuals to visit museums (Gregory and Witcomb, 2007; Smith, 2020; Smith and Campbell, 2016; Watson, 2015), visitors’ emotional engagement, connection, and resulting behavioral outcomes (such as word-of-mouth, donation intentions, and revisit behavior) (Gregory and Witcomb, 2007; Smith, 2020; Smith and Campbell, 2016; Watson, 2015, 2016), as well as emotional experiences elicited through sensory activities (De Jong, 2018; Gregory and Witcomb, 2007; Tolia-Kelly et al., 2016; Witcomb, 2014). An increasing body of research highlights the positive psychological benefits associated with the experience of visiting museums (Ander et al., 2011; Chatterjee and Camic, 2015; Fujiwara, 2013). In terms of research methods, scholars have utilized self-report questionnaires, interviews, observation, and tracking without intervention (Serenko and Turel, 2019) to gather data from museum visitors and analyze their experiences (Binnie, 2010; Luebke et al., 2016; Reed, 2018), with the aim of investigating the emotional impact of museum activities.
In summary, this study employs a qualitative approach, utilizing semi-structured interviews and systematic observation, to analyze the emotional dynamics of young visitors participating in museotherapy workshops. To delve deeper into the mechanisms underlying emotions and emotional changes, appraisal theories of emotion are introduced to examine the emotional experiences of young visitors. Furthermore, as it was not feasible to observe each visitor directly without intervention, the entire process was video recorded. Visitors’ facial expressions and body movements were analyzed through the recordings, and this approach was combined with an examination of dialogue content to comprehensively deconstruct the process of emotional changes and the factors influencing them.
Text analysis (textual data) aimed to answer: “Which touchpoints in the museotherapy workshop triggered emotions?” and “What specific emotions were triggered?” It revealed the content of emotions, their triggers (e.g., specific artifacts), and the participants’ reflection on and narrative reconstruction of their own emotions. Video analysis (nonverbal data) aimed to answer: “What was the immediate intensity and dynamic change of the emotions?” It captured more automatic emotional responses from participants that were either unrecorded in speech or even unnoticed by themselves, thereby further delineating the “W-shaped curve” of emotional fluctuation throughout the entire workshop process.
When text analysis indicated that a particular session (e.g., interaction with a certain artifact) elicited strong positive emotional expressions, we would look for corresponding nonverbal evidence (e.g., smiles, relaxed posture) in the video analysis. For instance, when a participant described a notebook as evoking nostalgic happiness, the video captured them laughing heartily. This consistency significantly enhanced the validity of the conclusion that “artifacts can elicit positive emotions.” Conversely, when textual data were limited or emotional expressions were neutral, nonverbal data provided additional insight. For example, a participant might have spoken very little. Still, their focused expression during the art creation session and their forward-leaning posture during activities corroborated, on a nonverbal level, their state of engagement, enriching our understanding of the “neutral-to-positive” emotional spectrum.
3 Stimulation-resonance-dialogue: text analysis results
The emotional changes experienced by visitors during the workshop are dynamic and influenced by various factors, including the environment, object stimulation, and individual personal experiences. To gain deeper insights into visitors’ perspectives, focus group interviews were conducted in the form of dialogue during workshops led by a psychological counselor, which were conducted in groups of 7–8 participants. To enhance emotional connection among visitors during each session, we assigned individuals of similar ages to the same session. For instance, the first group consisted entirely of first- and second-year undergraduates, while the second group comprised fourth-year students. The focus group interviews employed unstructured questioning and adopted a conversational approach to help participants lower their psychological guard and feel at ease. The sessions are structured into the following sections: Firstly, participants are encouraged to recall the objects that made the deepest impression on them and share their emotional responses. Secondly, they are guided to reflect on the similarities between themselves and the historical figures associated with the objects, as well as to discuss any recent challenges they have faced in their own lives. Thirdly, the discussion delves deeper into the underlying reasons and emotional journeys behind their feelings, fostering an environment where other participants can offer suggestions or share their resonances. Participants were recruited through voluntary registration. As the activity was not designed as clinical research, we employed the Trait Anxiety Inventory (TAI) as a pre-test measurement tool (Spielberger, 1989) and established an exclusion criterion for participants scoring above 65. The TAI measures anxiety on a scale ranging from 20 (minimal anxiety) to 80 (maximal anxiety). It does not provide fixed cutoffs for “normal” or “abnormal” states but serves as a quantifiable indicator for comparing anxiety levels across individuals or groups. Generally, higher scores reflect more severe anxiety. Consequently, we determined the exclusion threshold based on both scale interpretation guidelines and the actual score distribution observed during registration. This empirical distribution—where participant scores ranged from 26 to 73—further validated the appropriateness of our predetermined exclusion criterion. Ultimately, we obtained valid interview responses from 81 participants, all aged between 17 and 22. The gender distribution of visitors varied significantly, with men comprising approximately 20% of the total.
3.1 Text sentiment analysis and emotional triggers
Text sentiment analysis involves extracting the emotions conveyed within textual content. With the development of social networks, it plays a significant role in decision-making and response to online public opinion (Wankhade et al., 2022). This process involves analyzing, processing, summarizing, and reasoning about subjective texts with emotional connotations. For example, the words “like” and “dislike” can appear in the same or similar context, such as I love reading books and I dislike reading books. By merely looking at word co-occurrences, we would learn similar vector representations of “like” and “dislike,” as these have similar lexical behavior. From a sentiment perspective, however, such vector representations should be very different, as they convey opposite polarity (Li et al., 2017). Thus, as this study progressed, the analysis gradually shifted from simple emotional words to more complex emotional sentences and emotional discourses.
Firstly, to ensure the analysis focused on the target research subjects, we removed all dialogue from the host (the psychological counselor) from the original interview transcripts, retaining only the participants’ quotations as the analysis corpus. After preprocessing, the final cleaned participant text used for analysis totaled 12,923 words and 180 segments. This study utilized the SPSSAU online platform2 for text sentiment analysis. The platform’s sentiment lexicon is composed of a combination of sentiment dictionaries from sources including BostonNLP, National Taiwan University, Tsinghua University, and HowNet, totaling 130,000 words.3
Secondly, within the text sentiment analysis module, we selected the “line” as the basic unit of analysis. This means the system treated each participant’s independent statement or response as a single unit for sentiment scoring. Its processing logic is as follows: first, it automatically segments the text using a built-in dictionary and identifies sentiment keywords; then, it calculates the intensity of sentiment words in the sentence via an algorithm, taking into account modifiers such as negation words and degree adverbs, and finally computes a comprehensive sentiment tendency score for the statement. Referring to the official SPSSAU explanation, the sentiment scores calculated by the platform are divided into four sentiment categories, specifically defined as follows: Strongly Negative: score range [−1, −1/3). Indicates the statement contains strong negative emotions. Moderately Negative: score range [−1/3, 0). Indicates the statement contains moderate or neutral negative emotions. Moderately Positive: score range [0, 1/3). Indicates the statement contains moderate or neutral positive emotions. Strongly Positive: score range [1/3, 1]. Indicates the statement contains strong positive emotions. If a word is not found in the sentiment dictionary, the prompt “Word not in sentiment dictionary” appears; in all other cases, a sentiment score is provided.4
After analysis via the above process, the platform ultimately performed sentiment scoring and classification on 180 independent statements. The statistical results were: 24 strongly negative, 6 moderately negative, 13 moderately positive, and 137 strongly positive statements. The combined total of strongly and moderately positive statements was 150, accounting for 83.33% of the total analyzed statements. This indicates that the majority of visitors who attended the workshop exhibited relatively positive emotional tendencies during the activity. The remaining 17% of moderately negative utterances primarily centered on participants’ recent personal struggles—such as difficulties in reducing phone use, dissatisfaction with their academic major, or coping with a recent breakup. These expressions functioned as a constructive emotional outlet during the session.
Conscious emotional experience is a consequence of emotional evaluation (LeDoux, 2022). According to the appraisal theories of emotion, which is an emotion research method in psychology, appraisal values are integrated in a pattern, perhaps linked to some core relational theme (e.g., danger, loss), which determines the specific emotion that occurs (e.g., fear, sadness) (Ellsworth, 2024). Once this is determined, the other components that belong to the emotion are activated. The transition from the core relational theme to the other components may even be mediated by an affect program (i.e., a dedicated brain circuit for emotion) (Moors, 2014). Thus, based on appraisal theories of emotion, the authors treated each emotional expression from the visitors as an emotional appraisal process, working backwards from the outcomes to identify the stimuli, to explore the visitor’s emotional experience process (Figure 2).
Figure 2. Framework of the appraisal theories of emotion.
The author found that the resulting texts could be categorized into three types (Table 2).
Table 2. Proportion of positive emotions for the three types of text.
Eighty-two sentences documented visitors’ experiences and insights from the activities. This category primarily encompasses feedback on the process and subjective gains from participating in workshop sessions such as collection, meditation, and creation. The proportion of positive emotions here was the highest, at about 91%.
30 sentences comprised visitors’ self-reports on their anxiety. These texts were direct accounts where individuals described their personal feelings and states of anxiety. Notably, positive emotions still accounted for approximately 87% within this category.
69 sentences were visitors’ suggestions for alleviating their own current anxiety or for addressing others’ troubles, with positive emotions making up approximately 74%.
The analysis of the interview transcripts corroborated this finding, revealing that visitors’ descriptions of their feelings during the workshop were not only the most frequent type of expression but also the primary source of the positive emotions identified. The authors sorted the emotional triggers in the results (Table 3) and classified them. Among the 82 visitor perceptions, 57 stimuli came from the objects and the stories behind them, 21 came from art creations, and the remaining 4 were from up-close encounters with objects, the overall workshop experience, meditation and sharing by others. The objects and their connotations were the most arousing positive emotions in the visitors’ perceptions.
Table 3. Example of the categorization of visitor perception triggers.
3.2 Connecting objects with youth’s emotions
The literature has cited very few reasons or criteria for the selection of healing objects in museums, and descriptions of the selection process in specific case studies have been overly general (Cutler, 2022; Ghadim and Daugherty, 2021; Watson et al., 2021). Therefore, this study integrates relevant core literature from psychology, neuroscience, medicine, and anthropology to propose a system of elements for museum healing objects, which is categorized into two dimensions: physical and psychological. The physical dimensions are subdivided into visual (Table 4) and tactile (Table 5), and the psychological dimensions are subdivided into religion (Table 6), myth (Table 7), and stories (Tables 8, 9).
Table 4. List of visual categories.
Table 5. List of tactile categories.
Table 6. List of religious symbols.
Table 7. List of mythological symbols.
Table 8. List of story tone categories.
Table 9. Story topic and connotation categories.
Based on the aforementioned elements of museum healing objects, the authors selected seven items from the Shanghai University Museum for use in the workshop (Table 10). These items included the student card of Tian Shenhua, an archive major at the College of Liberal Arts of Shanghai University; the exercise book from Aurora University; the 1939 annual grade report (transcript) for students of Gezhi Middle School; the 1952 report on the living conditions of the kindergarten at the privately-run Guangming Primary School; the modern painting “Tired Journey” by Feng Zikai; replica rap figurines from the Chengdu Museum; and white porcelain from the Xing Kiln (Figure 1). These seven collections were all mentioned in the focus group interviews with the visitors. Based on appraisal theories of emotion, the authors summarized the psychological responses of visitors to the collections as revealed in the interview content. Table 11 shows the visitors’ various emotional characteristics related to each collection. First, the authors anonymized all transcripts by replacing visitor names with unique codes (i.e., 20231124C) to ensure traceability and confidentiality. Second, the authors extracted all visitor statements related to the seven objects from the interview texts and identified explicitly expressed or implicitly conveyed emotions and attitudes in these statements. Each statement was assigned a preliminary “emotion label.” For example, regarding “Tired Journey,” the visitor’s comment “the person in the painting looks very lonely” was coded as “sympathy,” while “his state makes me feel relaxed” was coded as “comfort and ease.” Third, all emotion labels from the second step were consolidated and categorized to form the final “emotional characteristics” dimension, as presented in Table 11. Simultaneously, the number of visitor statements expressing the same emotional characteristic was counted, resulting in the data for the “frequency of visitor mentions” column in the table (i.e., “Tired Journey” was mentioned 10 times in total, with 2 of these mentions expressing “heartache and sympathy”).
Table 10. Collection selection criteria for the museotherapy workshops at Shanghai University Museum.
Table 11. Visitors’ emotional characteristics related to each collection.
For museum visitors, heritage objects can carry symbolic meaning for individuals if feelings are projected onto them. The object can act as a repository or container for projections of different states of mind (Lanceley et al., 2012). When the emotional evaluation process of a visitor is connected with the object, the individual emotion dominated by the object begins to change. The inter- and intraindividual variation in the appraisal process and the variables contributing to it will result in different emotion-related activities. Each variable contributes to the appraisal underlying the emotional response and its regulation by coping. As such, these appraisals contribute to inter- and intraindividual differences in emotional response (Lazarus, 2021).
In summary, to effectively engage the emotional resonance of young visitors through museum objects, this paper suggests that it is essential to first clarify the demographics and profiles of the target visitors. Subsequently, within the framework of healing objects, we should seek out items that resonate with these visitors. The collections can facilitate a deeper understanding of their meanings and significance. At the same time, visitors will unconsciously bring in objects or shapes related to “people” (such as personal items such as Tian Shenhua’s student card or humanoid objects such as rap figurines), generating a richer emotional experience and personal connection. Notably, directly touching objects amplifies visitors’ sensory experiences. The emotions evoked by the senses—such as novelty, comfort, and happiness—are often more straightforward and intense than other emotions.
3.3 Narrative-based dialogue framework in the interviews
In recent decades, psychology has increasingly focused on the uniqueness of the individual, showing a keen interest in life stories and their myriad possibilities. Furthermore, the diverse ways in which individuals interpret their life experiences and derive meaning from them have garnered significant attention. In this context of the “narrative turn” in psychology (Vassilieva, 2016), narrative-based dialogue framework has emerged as a vital approach.
In narrative-based dialogue, psychotherapists employ various distinctive methods to enhance the effectiveness of their conversations, and elements of these techniques can be observed in the interactions between the psychological counselor and visitors during the workshop (Table 12). Consequently, it is crucial to structure a clear pathway for visitors to achieve a meaningful emotional experience efficiently.
Table 12. Use of narrative-based dialogue framework in interviews.
4 The “W” emotion curve: video analysis results
In emotion studies, in addition to sampling emotional sentences, action expressions can be sampled to determine the instantaneous emotion of an individual. Ekman noted that motion records (film or video) are preferable to still photographs (Ekman et al., 1972). Moreover, based on the emotional expression of facial expressions in daily life, he proposed six basic expression examples, including happiness, sadness, surprise, fear, anger, and distress (Ekman and Friesen, 1978). He proposed the facial affect scoring technique (FAST) which involves scoring each observable movement in each of three areas of the face: (l) the brows/forehead area; (2) the eyes/lids; and (3) the lower face, including the cheeks, nose, mouth, and chin. In terms of the scoring category, FAST employs photographic examples to define each of the movements within each area of the face, which, theoretically, distinguishes among six emotions: happiness, sadness, surprise, fear, anger, and distress (Ekman et al., 1972).
Therefore, we can utilize visitors’ facial expressions to further refine the emotional classification derived from text analysis. Simultaneously, we can analyze and interpret the emotions expressed through their non-verbal cues (Table 13). Given that the overall mood of the workshop remained predominantly neutral, without any extreme emotions such as anger or fear, we can also consider body movements to enhance our understanding of the visitors’ emotional states.
Table 13. Description of emotional intensity levels.
The following is an example of text with a known positive emotional tendency:
Upon seeing this exercise book, I was instantly transported back to my high school days, and my inner student reemerged. Just as I used to doodle and scribble in the margins of my textbooks, I found myself drawing beside the illustrations once again. Oh, look! I can see the owner wrote “cannot you” next to the doodle.
According to appraisal theories of emotion, the visitor experienced happiness upon encountering the emotional trigger—the exercise book. After reflecting on it, she associated it with her high school days, which evoked pleasant memories of doodling in the margins. When she remarked, “It feels like being back in high school,” this visitor (No. 231107C) smiled broadly, her eyes crinkling with joy, and by the end, she was laughing out loud, covering her mouth with her hands. This indicates that the refined emotion correlating with the positive emotional text should be happiness. As illustrated in Tables 14, 15, we captured snippets of dialogue, facial expressions, and physical behaviors from both a boy and a girl during their participation in the workshop to analyze the emotions expressed through both verbal and non-verbal communication.
Table 14. Table of emotions generated from activities by visitor 231013D (male, sophomore).
Table 15. Table of emotions generated from activities by visitor 231013C (female, sophomore).
By examining facial expressions and body movements, we can more accurately determine visitors’ emotional changes at each stage of the workshop. Based on our observations from the video, we created an emotion curve to systematically analyze the overall emotional trend of each individual (Figure 3). Subsequently, we selected the complete video recordings of the 36 participants5 and generated a set of emotion curves (Figure 4) to offer a more comprehensive understanding of the overall emotional experience throughout the workshop.
Figure 3. The emotion curve drawn by visitor 20231013D based on the workshop video.
Figure 4. Emotion curve of 36 participants.
As illustrated in the emotion curve, the overall emotional tone of the visitors ranged from neutral to positive, with most visitors’ emotional responses remaining fairly consistent; the overall score was “W” (curve shape). From the perspective of the workshop process, in addition to the triggers previously analyzed, the visitors’ emotions were also influenced by their personal preferences for the attributes of the workshop. For instance, some visitors were more reserved and preferred interactions that did not require much communication, while others desired more opportunities for dialogue. Furthermore, as this was a group activity, the visitors’ emotions were also shaped by the feelings of their peers. If no one in a group was good at speaking, the visitors’ emotional responses tended to be relatively subdued.
5 Conclusion
This study initially utilized the interview texts extracted from the videos as primary data and employed the SPSSAU to analyze the emotional tendencies of the texts. Subsequently, based on appraisal theories of emotion, the study identified the emotion triggers of positive emotional tendencies within the texts, revealing that the objects and their connotations during the workshop were the primary factors in evoking positive emotions in the visitors. Furthermore, the research further validated the effectiveness of the healing objects elements and indicated that, at the psychological level, collections that are closely related to “people” and highly aligned with personal experiences are more likely to serve as significant emotion triggers for young visitors.
Moreover, this paper provides a detailed analysis of the narrative-based dialogue framework employed in interviews with the psychological counselor. By utilizing externalizing conversations, diversifying responses, and re-authoring conversations, alongside the narrative power of objects, this museotherapy effectively facilitates the expression and release of visitors’ emotions, exploring a positive and constructive pathway for emotional wellbeing. Finally, we utilized the videos recorded during the workshop to observe the expressions and body movements of all participants. By integrating these observations with the interview texts, we conducted a detailed analysis of the visitors’ non-verbal emotional expressions, which led to the creation of the “W” emotion curve. This approach enabled us to gain a deeper understanding of their emotional changes throughout the workshop, revealing that the overall emotional variation among the visitors was minimal, with the majority exhibiting neutral to positive emotions.
In summary, this study explores the potential mechanisms underlying the young participants’ emotional experiences in museotherapy workshops. Through their interactions with museum objects, young visitors not only acquire rich emotional experiences but also actively participate in various activities, such as art creation and interviews. This engagement fosters self-healing and emotional regulation. Although this study has yielded some findings, it still possesses certain limitations. Regarding the research sample, constraints in time and resources led to the selection of only a limited number of participants and cases for analysis, which may affect the generalizability of the research results to some extent. Thus, future studies delving into long-term efficacy and sustained impact of museotherapy activities merit attention. It is hoped that future research can expand the scope of study and employ methods such as biofeedback techniques [6] to assess the effects more accurately. Concurrently, it is anticipated that future studies will further explore the influence of different types of cultural heritage and various museum settings on visitors’ emotional experiences, as well as how to enhance the therapeutic outcomes of museums through innovative healing activities. This could involve integrating modern technological means—such as virtual reality and augmented reality—with cultural heritage to create more immersive, multi-sensory museotherapy experiences; or combining museotherapy with other social service programs, such as well-being education and community services, to form a more diversified service spectrum.
Data availability statement
The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.
Ethics statement
This research received official approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB), chaired by Jizhong Huang. The current members of the committee include Bo Jin, Yong Duan, Huadong Ding, Jian Xu, Linxing Zhou, Xiaoping Sheng, Yunzhong Zhang, Yingxiang Yu, Shidong Ji, Jianxiang Ding, Yang Huang, Fanxing Bu, and Jing Xiong. The studies were conducted in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study. Written informed consent was obtained from the individual(s) for the publication of any potentially identifiable images or data included in this article.
Author contributions
SW: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Validation, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. XG: Data curation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Visualization, Writing – original draft. WL: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing – review & editing.
Funding
The author(s) declared that financial support was received for this work and/or its publication. This work was supported by the National Social Science Fund of China (Grant No. 24VWB030) and the Chenguang Program of the Shanghai Education Development Foundation and the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful for the kind assistance provided by Shanghai University Museum.
Conflict of interest
The author(s) declared that this work was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Generative AI statement
The author(s) declared that Generative AI was not used in the creation of this manuscript.
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Footnotes
^SPSSAU is a web-based online data analysis platform. The URL for the SPSSAU online platform is as follows:https://spssau.com/.
^The URL for the SPSSAU online platform is as follows:https://spssau.com/.
^According to the platform’s usage instructions, the text sentiment analysis module of this platform uses a sentiment lexicon for sentiment score calculation. For details, please refer to:https://spssau.com/helps/textanalysis/sentiment.html.
^According to the platform’s usage instructions, when performing sentiment analysis by line, SPSSAU defaults to compressing the sentiment score between −1 and 1, and determines the sentiment polarity based on the calculated sentiment score. The platform’s sentiment scores are continuous values obtained through an algorithm that comprehensively calculates the intensity of sentiment words in the text and accounts for modifiers (such as negation words and degree adverbs), followed by normalization. Within this range, negative values indicate a negative sentiment tendency, while positive values indicate a positive sentiment tendency. The closer the absolute value is to 0, the weaker the sentiment polarity and the more neutral the expression.
^The workshop was recorded in its entirety with cameras set up in front of the participants after they signed the informed consent form. In principle, the recording of each session began when the first participant entered and ended when the last participant left. However, the event included a segment at the end where the participants selected bookmark gifts; this segment was not recorded on camera and was documented by staff recalling the participants’ reactions. A total of 11 events were recorded with 81 participating individuals. Excluding those whose facial expressions and body language could not be fully captured due to seating angles, those who did not participate throughout, and those who wore masks concealing their faces, 36 participants remained.
^For example, Electromyographic (EMG) Biofeedback (De Witte et al., 2019), Electrodermal Activity (EDA) Biofeedback/Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) Biofeedback (Pop-Jordanova and Pop-Jordanov, 2020), Electroencephalographic (EEG) Biofeedback (Markiewcz, 2017), Skin Temperature Biofeedback (Credidio, 1982).
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Abbreviations
TAI, Trait Anxiety Inventory; FAST, Facial Affect Scoring Technique.
Keywords: China, emotional experience, museotherapy, university students, visitor studies
Citation: Wang S, Gong X and Lian W (2026) Museotherapy as a method: an investigation into the emotional experiences of Chinese youth visitors. Front. Psychol. 16:1716551. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1716551
Edited by:
Bruno Gingras, University of Vienna, AustriaReviewed by:
Jinkyung Kim, Light and Space Art Therapy Research Institute, Republic of KoreaLefkothea-Vasiliki Andreou, University of Ioannina, Greece
Copyright © 2026 Wang, Gong and Lian. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Siyi Wang, d3N5MzE5MkBzaHUuZWR1LmNu