The Penta Model of Flow Experience: A Study on Service Design of Duan Inkstone Art Exhibition in Guangdong Museum

Abstract

Under the transformation background of the social function from “research centers” to “education centers”, museums around the world try to take public education as an important function, provide public services to the society, and the participation of the people is also unprecedented. However, there is still no clear design process and method for the public education service of museums. They facing the problems of single activity form, insufficient audience attraction, and low age education content, there is still a certain degree of “emphasis on exhibition, light on education”. This study introduces the flow theory, discusses, refines and expands the basic elements of the museum's public education services that facilitate the audience or users to obtain the flow experience, reorders and constructs the “Penta Model” of flow experience in museum’s public education services. Through exhibition planning, experience content, and educational games, the audience is promoted in the five flow stages of goal, challenge, integration, feedback and ability, and then gradually enter the flow status, so as to realize the purpose of the museum’s immersive education service. Taking the service design of Duan Inkstone Art Exhibition in Guangdong Museum which named “Guanyan” as an example, the design verification of “Penta Model” of flow experience was carried out. Through value proposition design, service system construction, exhibition journey planning and service touchpoints design (display of the exhibition, offline experience activities, online education games), the five flow status are organically integrated into each link, including the theme atmosphere and display method of the exhibition, process and interactive of viewing, in order to meet the audience’s dual needs for knowledge and entertainment. The design practice shows that the museum public education service designed based on the “Penta Model” of flow experience provides the audience with more attractive educational content and experience methods, and also provides new ideas and methods for the relevant functional departments of the museum.