Abstract
•Critics are less likely to review exhibitions at complex-identity art museums.•Complex-identity art museums are more likely to experience attendance growth.•Critical reviews increase museum attendance.•Such effect is stronger for focused-identity art museums.
Organizational studies have yielded conflicting answers to the question of whether having a clear, focused organizational identity or a complex, category-spanning one leads to more favorable reactions by external audiences. We propose one approach to reconciling apparently divergent findings by focusing on the social roles and relative importance of different audience segments for different organizational outcomes. Using longitudinal data on U.S. art museums, we examine four hypotheses concerning audience responses to museums with complex (e.g., art and science) versus focused (art only) identity. These hypotheses are based on a conceptual distinction among three key audience segments for art museums, elite professional critics, art connoisseurs, and casual consumers, and theorized preferences by each segment for museums with different types of identity. In concluding, we discuss the implications of our arguments and findings for future work on cultural organizations specifically, as well as for other types of organizations.