On May 6, Createquity, a research-backed online publication that conducts in-depth analysis of the arts field, presented Why Don’t They Come?, a study that examines the reasons why those with lower incomes and less education don’t participate in the arts. The study had several key findings, among them: People with lower incomes and less education (low-SES [socio-economic status]) participate at lower rates in a huge range of activities, including not just classical music concerts and plays, but also less “elitist” forms of engagement; cost is a barrier for some low-SES individuals, but not as many as expected; low-SES adults watch considerable amounts of commercial television, and low-SES adults who don’t attend arts events watch more TV than low-SES adults who do. Written by Ian David Moss, Louise Geraghty, Clara Schuhmacher, and Talia Gibas, the study cites the National Endowment for the Arts’ most recent Survey of Public Participation in the Arts and its 2015 “When Going Gets Tough” report on why people do or do not attend arts events, statistics concerning arts participation in Europe, and other analyses that examine arts attendance.
Posted May 8, 2015
