Visitor reaction
Effects on visitors
& their reactions
Independent visitor surveys, carried out in several cities and countries, demonstrate the positive effects the BODY WORLDS exhibition has had on visitors:
Evaluation of individual aspects of the exhibition:
87% of the visitors stated that they knew more about the human body after their tour.
56% said that it made them think more about life and death.
79% felt “deep reverence” for the marvel of the human body.
68% left the exhibition with valuable incentives for a healthier lifestyle.
47% of the visitors reported that they appreciated their body more after having seen the exhibition.
Personal consequences resulting from the exhibition:
68% of the respondents resolved to pay more attention to their physical health in future.
23% of the respondents were more willing to donate organs after they had seen the exhibition.
22% of the visitors could well imagine donating their body for plastination after death.
32% stated that after having seen the exhibition they would agree more readily “that their dead body should be opened (autopsied) to determine the cause of death.”
74% will continue to deal with the experience and insights they gained in the exhibitions for some time.
A follow-up survey among visitors in Vienna conducted six months after the end of the exhibition clearly indicated that a considerable share of visitors actually changed behavioral patterns according to their resolutions to lead a healthier life:
As many as 9% of the visitors stated that they had smoked less and consumed less alcohol.
33% followed a healthier diet since then.
25% engaged in more sports activities.
14% became more aware of their body.
Professor Ernst-D. Lantermann of the University of Kassel, Germany, developed this survey, conducted and evaluated it in most of the cities.