The Museum as a Mindful Space: Reducing Visitors' Stress and Anxiety Levels Through the ASBA Protocol.
Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) January 14, 2026 Annalisa Banzi, Pier Luigi Sacco, Maria Elide Vanutelli et al.
A brief, 15-minute mindfulness practice adapted from Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and administered in either an art or a science museum significantly reduced state anxiety in 79 healthy adults, with large effect sizes. Openness to experience predicted greater anxiety reduction in the art museum, while science interest predicted better outcomes in the science museum. The findings suggest that short, standardized mindfulness protocols can offer immediate wellbeing benefits for museum visitors across different types of institutions.