Public perception of war memorials: A study in Ballarat

Abstract

A quantitative survey of the Ballarat and district community provided a relatively well educated, older sample, having a high personal connection with the remembrance of war. People whose family had served or who acted as their family history custodian had stronger views on most aspects of war remembrance than those without such connection. Thoughts about Australia were felt with equal strength by people with and without familial connection. People grouped a range of memorial forms into those that were Monuments which included more active and socially experienced activities and those that could be described as Artefacts which were more passively and individually experienced. Similar views were held with respect to the importance of each type of memorial in remembrance. The most important purpose of war memorials was for commemoration while education was seen as having slightly lesser importance.