Planning Stage

	Literature Review Return to Literature Review Social Impact of the Arts Project: Report to the William Penn Foundation Date 1998, March Purpose of Study The purpose of this study was to provide evidence of the contribution the arts and culture make on communities. Three sets of relationships were studied: Community arts and the region Cultural participation and civic engagement Culture, diversity and quality of life Methodology The findings were generated from a geographic database and six case studies. 1) nonprofit arts and cultural arts organizations, 2) non-arts voluntary institutions, (religious, neighborhood improvement, youth and social service), 3) cultural participant database (households involved in regional activities and programs), 4) community murals, 5) census data for block groups, 6) information on political participation, data on quality of life measures, artists and NEA-sponsored survey of public participation in the arts. The case studies were of six neighborhoods in Philadelphia. Interviews; Census information; Survey instruments; Ethnographic accounts - "individual experience of the social meanings of art among professional and non-professional artists". Archival data on 1) "the use of arts in social change movements, media accounts of arts and culture in the AIDS epidemic", 2) city and state funding applications, 3) Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance Membership Directory, 4) Pennsylvania Folklore Directory, and 5) The Internal Revenue Service master file. Results Community arts and the region – The study looked at the relationship between what's happening on the local level in term of arts and culture and the health of the larger cultural institutions. The study found that those who attend arts and cultural events in their neighborhoods are more likely to attend arts and cultural events at the large institutions than those who attend fewer cultural events in their neighborhood. Cultural participation and civic engagement – The study showed that "the presence of arts groups in communities apparently stimulates individual participation not just in local, but also in city-wide cultural events." Culture, diversity and the quality of life – the study looked at the relationship between level of diversity (in terms of race and class) in neighborhoods and the number of arts and cultural organizations in the area. The study found that "diverse communities are the center of much of the arts and cultural activity in the region. These neighborhoods are home to more arts and cultural groups, as well as other types of social organizations, than more homogenous communities." The presence of community arts organizations stimulates participation in the arts across the region. Those who attend art and cultural events in their neighborhoods are more likely to attend arts and cultural events in other sections of the city. Cultural participants tend to take a more positive view of their neighborhood. Cultural participants are twice as likely as other residents are to rate the quality of life in their neighborhood as "excellent." Interesting quote: "Quality of life is not how nice a house you have. It's the neighborhood you live in . . . When I compare myself to my suburban friends, I am as safe in my neighborhood as they are. But they're more isolated culturally . . .Culture is such a broad thing – it's not just going to the ballet or the orchestra . . . it's all art, an experience of participation that moves you emotionally. The wealthy suburbanites & exurbanites come into the city to get art. The solid middle class is going to and from soccer games. We're enjoying a wide range of experience and exposure to all kinds of art." Assessments The report findings are not clear and throughout the report a statement of findings do not seem to coincide with the graphs provided. For example, the finding, "arts and cultural organizations build a reservoir of mutual trust and cooperation in the region's communities," is exemplified with a graph that has non-arts social organizations on the y-axis and arts & cultural organizations within mile on the x-axis. The graph shows a direct relationship between the two, as the amount of arts & cultural organizations increases so do the number of non-arts social organizations. It requires a leap of faith of the reader to believe that this relationship equals or is related to the finding stated above. The report includes only graphic findings that do not depict statistical findings well. The report lacks descriptive detail of the use of methodological instruments. The piece is more of an advertisement for the development of the geographic database and less of an impact piece. The study did a general population survey involving community participation - arts and non-arts activities. Questions from this piece might be useful for the SOAR public opinion piece. Looking at how the report defines its universe in terms of arts and cultural institutions. The community arts profiles which were done on the four neighborhoods. The discussion on The Arts in the Postmodern City, p. 25. Return to Literature Review