Interpretation in Native American Tribal Museums

The interpretive methods used in Native American tribal museums have received minimal focus from researchers. Research on this topic generally focus on the National Museum of the American Indian, and as such the understanding of the Native American lens is limited. The objective of this research is to determine whether a Native American lens exists, and the interpretive standards related to that lens. The understanding of this lens by non-tribal museums might aid in the decolonization of museum practices and facilitate collaboration required by the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. Surveys, semi-structured interviews, and site-visits were used to collect data on interpretive practices and how a Native American identity influences those practices. The research found that a Native American lens does seem to exist, but limited data negatively impacts whether this is a conclusive fact. This research may serve as a foundation for future research into the same topic, as it delivers a baseline for what to look for in site-visits, but much more data is required to determine whether the findings are outliers or standards.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Heritage and Museum Sciences

Grantor

Texas Tech University

Year dc:date.issued

2026

Author dc:creator

• Hatley, Trystan

Chair dc:contributor.committeechair

• Saffell, Cameron

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Hurst, Stance
• Rowe, Susan

• Interpretation
• Tribal Museum
• Interpretive Lens
• Decolonization

Language dc:language.iso

English

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/2346/109278

OAI record oai:identifier

https://ttu-ir.tdl.org/server/oai/request?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=dim&identifier=oai%3Attu-ir.tdl.org%3A2346%2F109278