Imaging identity through museums

This paper presents qualitative research on how local museums can reflect, shape and reinforce the cultural identity of the local community. The paper is based on research conducted in the spring of 2011 in an ethnically and socioeconomically diverse Southern New England community through participant observation with aid of photography and staff interviews at two museums. The focus of this research is on the construction of identity through the relationship between staff members¿ interpretations of the local community¿s culture and how they represent that culture in museum exhibits in terms of Goffman¿s theory on presentation of self. This was revealed through three themes, Separate, but Connected, Socio-Economic Clash, and The Town ¿Native¿, highlighting three aspects of the Town¿s identity that manifested in the museums. Overall, this research contributed to previous work on the construction of identity through museums by affirming it and by providing more insight into the role of staff members in construction of identity through Goffman¿s theory.