The Economic Value of Diversity in Art Museums

Diversity and inclusivity are raging topics in the museum sector, encompassing from ethnicity to visible impairment. This thesis focused on ethnic diversity of individuals associated with the museum from first and second generation Non-Western descent and the services museums provide to stimulate inclusion. The Dutch cultural sector launched the Code Cultural Diversity in 2011 which distinguishes between four organizational levels of an institution, namely Partners, Public, Program and Personnel. The levels serve as a framework to analyze the efficiency in the use of resources through increased diversity and the strategic management to make that happen. Based on seven large art museums in Amsterdam, Den-Hague and Rotterdam, cities with high demographics with a migration background, a qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews and secondary data was conducted. Results point to the organizational process in adoption of a diverse work form and identify challenges to achieve it. The conclusions of this thesis contain recommendations for art museums to increase diversity of collections, programs, and individuals as well as policy implications