Seventeenth International Conference on the Inclusive Museum

Abstract

This research explores the psychological impact of extreme weather events on gallery, library, archive, and museum (GLAM) professionals as they seek to fulfil their professional duty to their collections in times of crisis. The concept of professional duty as experienced by GLAM professionals will be explored through the framework of care ethics and emotional and affected labour. As with other forms of emotional labour, GLAM professionals are expected to regulate their emotions to meet the requirements of their job. Even during a disaster, this regulation is expected by employers and often requires the suppression of emotions such as distress. However, given the close relationship between GLAM professionals and the collections under their care, this emotional work cannot be so easily separated from the personal. To date, professional guidance for emergency preparedness and response focuses on the well-being of the collections but has little to say about the personal situation of staff. The use of a care ethics framework, which stresses the importance of emotions such as compassion and empathy in responding to the needs of others, seeks to emphasize and promote the well-being of care-givers (GLAM professionals) and care-receivers (collections and community members) in a network of social relations and circumstances. This research seeks to advance understanding of the incompatibilities between personal and professional duties in times of crisis and to establish evidence-based guidelines for protecting GLAM professionals before, during, and after emergency situations.