Research

2020
Mithlo NM, Sherman A.(2020) Perspective-Taking Can Lead to Increased Bias: A Call for ‘Less Certain’ Positions in American Indian Contexts. Curator: The Museum Journal 63(3):353-369. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/cura.12373
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Sherman A, Cupo L, Mithlo NM (2020) Perspective-taking increases emotionality and empathy but does not reduce harmful biases against American Indians: Converging evidence from the museum and lab. PLoS ONE 15(2): e0228784. journals.plos.org/plosone/article/authors?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0228784 Download Article

 

"Seeing American Indians: Self, Other, and the Role of Visitor Mindsets in Museums"

National Endowment for the Arts Grant Report Download Seeing American Indians Final Report PDF “Expanding cultural competencies for interpreting American Indian subject matter in museums through cognitive perspective taking” a NEA grant project

"Seeing American Indians" occurred in the changing “jewel box” area of the Irene Helen Jones Parks Gallery of Art as temporary exhibit site in spring 2017 at the Autry Museum of the American West.

Along with my co-investigator, Occidental College Assistant Professor of Cognitive Science, Aleksandra Sherman, we hosted an exhibit of four Edward S. Curtis portrait photographs of American Indian peoples. We collaborated with 60 volunteer participants in museum-based research. Volunteer participants were asked a series of questions about the portraits while wearing sensor devices.

NEA grant description: To support cognitive perspective taking research conducted with viewers of American Indian material culture in museum and lab settings. Behavioral, eye-tracking, and physiological data will be collected to demonstrate that perspective taking expands appreciation for American Indian art by affecting perceptual and emotional responses. Research will be conducted with undergraduates at Occidental College and with volunteers at the Autry Museum of the American West with the aim of enhancing visual competencies and deepening cultural interpretation. Our work will contribute to the growing literature on the importance of arts to values of citizenship, human rights and social justice.

Our aim was to enhance the museum visitor experience by helping museums gain a better understanding of how to present American Indian history and culture to the public.

In tandem with the Autry exhibit, we have selected 15 Curtis portraits to utilize in a lab setting with students. These photos were selected with the following criteria in mind: regional diversity, gender balance, age variance, traditional and contemporary dress and a range of emotional expressions.

Research findings from our study will significantly contribute to educational programming in the arts and museums. Biased and narrow framing of distinct minority groups inhibit the educational goals of museums in reaching diverse audiences. We aim to increase understanding of American Indian culture through the arts and in doing so, enhance the educational experience of all viewers.

Our project will bridge the arts and sciences by employing converging methodologies: experimental laboratory studies and naturalistic, but controlled experimentation in a museum setting. This interdisciplinary approach is of essential to both museum studies and the cognitive sciences, particularly because of the scarcity of experimental approaches occurring outside the laboratory, and the scarcity of museum studies drawing on experimental research.

2016
Sherman, A. & Mithlo, N.M. (August 2016). “Expanding Cultural Competencies for Interpreting American Indian Subject Matter in Museums through Cognitive Perspectives.” Talk presented at 11th International Conference on the Arts in Society. Los Angeles, CA.

2017
Sherman, A., & Mithlo, N.M. (October 2017). “Seeing American Indians: Self, Other, and the Role of Visitor Mindsets in Museums.” Invited talk and paper workshop at the Autry Museum of the American West, Los Angeles, CA.

Mithlo, N.M. (October 2017). “Self and Others: Why Not Knowing May be a Good Thing.” Invited talk presented at Phi Betta Kappa (En)Lightning Talks, Los Angeles.

• Cupo, L., Mithlo, N.M., Sherman, A. (November 2017). “Seeing American Indians.”
Poster presented at Psychonomic Society 58th Annual Conference. Vancouver,
Canada.

• Hossain, E., Cupo, L., Silverstein, I., Mithlo, N.M., Sherman, A. (November 2017). “Seeing American Indians: When Physiology Meets Art in the Museum.” Poster presented at SACNAS Conference. Salt Lake City, UT.Mithlo, N.M., Sherman, A.

2018
Mithlo, N.M. “Seeing American Indians.” (October 2018). Talk presented at University of California Los Angeles, Institute of American Cultures Fall Forum.

Mithlo, N.M. “Seeing American Indians: Self, Other, and the Role of Visitor Mindsets in Museums.” (November 2018). Talk presented at the American Anthropological Association Society for Visual Anthropology Visual Research Conference.

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