Abstract

Sensory museology represents an emerging paradigm within contemporary museum practice that reconfigures 
how exhibitions engage audiences through multisensory, participatory, and inclusive design strategies. This paper 
examines the extent to which multisensory exhibitions enhance accessibility, learning, emotional engagement, and 
social inclusion, while critically interrogating their alignment with Universal Design principles. Drawing on case 
study analysis, participatory design methodologies, and comparative evaluation of exhibition practices, the study 
explores visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, and digital mediation strategies across diverse museum contexts. 
Findings indicate that multisensory approaches can significantly enrich visitor experience, deepen interpretive 
engagement, and support inclusion for diverse audiences, including persons with disabilities and neurodivergent 
individuals. However, evidence also highlights persistent tensions, including sensory overload risks, uneven 
accessibility outcomes, ethical concerns around sensory data use, and infrastructural and budgetary constraints. 
The study further demonstrates that successful inclusive museology depends not only on technological integration 
but also on co-creation with stakeholders, iterative design processes, and sensitivity to cultural and embodied 
differences in perception. Ultimately, sensory museology expands traditional curatorial paradigms by shifting from 
object-centered display practices to experience-centered, participatory frameworks that reposition museums as 
spaces of shared sensory knowledge production and democratic cultural engagement.