This section houses research relating specifically to audience development. The two main issues covered by this section relate to attracting new audiences, and diversifying an existing audience base.
The research in this section should be seen as a complement to CultureHive and AudienceFinder: two relatively new resources that are rich with best practice guidance and insight.
The summaries in this category are:
This research was conducted by Stijn Daenekindt at Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands
This paper tackles the question of why people feel that some concerts are exclusive and excluding. The data comes from a survey of people in Belgium which included questions about attitudes towards classical and pop/rock concerts. Ultimately …
This research was conducted by Jessica Sherrod Hale and Joanna Woronkowicz at Indiana University, USA
This paper looked at the effects of arts programming at a large university campus in the United States. In 2016 Indiana University made a big investment in on-campus arts programming, including festivals with performances, film …
This research was conducted by Sara Suarez‐Fernandez, Juan Prieto‐Rodriguez, and Maria Jose Perez‐Villadoniga at the University of Oviedo, Spain
This paper disentangles the relationship between income and education in the way that both influence the likelihood of engaging in the arts. Consistent with other research in this area, increases in …
This research was conducted by Laurie Hanquinet, Dave O’Brien and Mark Taylor at the University of York, University of Edinburgh and University of Sheffield
This paper compared survey data with ticket sales data to better understand who attends literary events and dance performances in England. It found that people from …
This research was conducted by Angela Besana and Annamaria Esposito at IULM University, Italy
This paper describes how 'marketing and fundraising impact the economic performances of American symphony orchestras and opera houses’. Specifically, it looked at the way that the organisations make use of social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and …
This research was conducted by Daisy Fancourt, Louise Baxter and Fabiana Lorencatto at University College London
This paper explored ‘barriers to engagement in participatory arts activities amongst people with either depression or anxiety’. Active participation in the arts is known to generate a mixture of positive outcomes: it often makes …
This research was conducted by Loretta Ho, Blair Wheaton and Shyon Baumann at the University of Toronto, Canada
This paper seeks to understand how people acquire the tastes and habits that lead to an appreciation of classical music and opera. The researchers looked at people who had music lessons during …
This research was conducted by Hei Wan Mak, Rory Coulter and Daisy Fancourt at University College London
This paper looked at the relationship between people’s arts engagement and the characteristics of where they live. The study uncovered geographical differences in the levels and types of arts engagement. For example, active …
This research was conducted by Antonio Ariño Villarroya and Ramon Llopis-Goig at the University of Valencia, Spain
This paper takes data from the Survey of Cultural Habits and Practices in Spain 2018/19 to reveal three groups of people in what the authors call ‘the cultivated population’ (essentially, the cultural elite). …
This research was conducted by Martijn Mulder and Erik Hitters at Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands
This paper was able to identify six distinct motivations for attending live music – either at festivals or concerts. The first and strongest motivational component was 'togetherness' (including socialising, dancing, singing along, etc.). 'Escapism' was …