The impact of exhibit anthropomorphism on visitors’ cultural identity when cultural relics tell past stories

The anthropomorphism of museum exhibits has increasingly become a key factor in enhancing the appeal of museums and cultural heritage sites. However, the effectiveness of multimodal combinations of exhibit anthropomorphism in strengthening visitors’ cultural identity remains unclear. Guided by narrative transportation theory, this study categorizes the anthropomorphic characteristics of museum exhibits into three types, including linguistic, visual, and auditory. Employing a mixed-methods exploratory approach combining SmartPLS and fsQCA, a comprehensive analysis of 497 questionnaires was conducted. The findings reveal that exhibit anthropomorphism significantly impact cultural identity, an effect partially mediated by narrative transportation and moderated by the level of media experience. Therefore, formulating differentiated communication strategies for visitors with varying media experience levels is crucial for enhancing visitors’ cultural identity. Based on these findings, this research clarifies visitors’ cognitive emotional transformation process during exhibit anthropomorphism’s communication, expanding the research horizon on visitors’ cognitive emotional coupling mechanism in its multimodal system.