Web‐based discussion groups at stake: the profile of museum professionals online Available to Purchase

Online forums help in stimulating debates and reflection on a wide range of cultural topics, as well as providing answers for museum professionals working in specialised areas. The main objective of this paper is to concentrate on the relevance of individuals interacting virtually within an informal knowledge setting, from which to judge the value of Web‐based discussion groups. However, little is known about how museum‐related forums target their audience and which subjects are of real interest to them. Arising from the statistical results of an international survey of users of online museum forums, the authors have investigated the users’ socio‐demographic profile, their content preference, and favourite Web‐based discussions (e.g. e‐mail lists, newsgroups, forums). The outcome of the collected data should be useful in further binding together the worldwide museum community, as there is great scope for enlivening interactions and empowering individual knowledge in various fields of expertise.