This section collates all the research relating to the impact of arts and culture that cannot be fitted into the other categories on CultureCase. This section comprises a small number of studies looking at diverse themes including the role of arts and culture on crime reduction, social cohesion and social mobility.

The summaries in this category are:

Using the arts to address social harm

This research was conducted by Tonimarie Benaton and five others at the University of Derby and Derby Theatre

Summary

This paper is an exploration of how the arts can address the issue of ‘social harm’ for young people with experience of care. The research is based on a programme run by …

The impact of cultural activities on the wellbeing of immigrants

This research was conducted by Eleftherios Giovanis at Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Turkey

Summary

This paper explores the ‘participation of migrants in socio-cultural activities related to arts, theatre, concerts and sports events’ and the impact of that participation on subjective well-being (SWB). The research looked at the experience of first, second …

Three barriers that hold back the use of public art to provoke debate

This research was conducted by Meghan Robidoux and Jason F. Kovacs at Queen’s University, Canada and the University of Seoul, Korea

Summary

This article is based on conversations with artists and leaders at arts organisations in Toronto, Canada that produce public art intended to provoke thought about the environment. The paper …

Using theatre to engage people in neuroscience and criminal justice

This research was conducted by Robert Blakey at the University of Oxford

Summary

This paper looked at whether people’s attitude to youth justice can be changed by watching a play about neuroscience. After watching the play, people recommended a slightly higher age of criminal responsibility than is currently the case in …

Measuring the social return on investment of an art gallery

This research was conducted by Andrew Jackson and Richard McManus at Canterbury Christ Church University

Summary

The paper describes a project to measure the social impact of Turner Contemporary art gallery in Margate, UK during the 2015/16 financial year. The total investment by Turner Contemporary in the Lifelong Learning programme for …

Using dance to bring about innovation

This research was conducted by Nina Bosic Yams at Mälardalen University, Sweden

Summary

This paper describes an attempt to inculcate innovative thinking and innovative practices through the use of contemporary dance and choreography. The study took place within the bureaucracy of a Swedish municipality in 2014-15. At the core of the …

The cultural values of the future business elite

This research was conducted by Janna Michael at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands. 

Summary

How does culture factor into the work and social lives of young professionals today? Through a series of in-depth interviews conducted with young business professionals in northwest Europe, this research calls into question simplistic links between …

By | 27 July 2018 |

Using community entrepreneurs to embed creative ventures in a rural community

This research was conducted by Ingebjørg Vestrum at the Nordland Research Institute, Norway

Summary

This paper examined the influential role of a community entrepreneur (CE) to create social change by introducing an annual jazz festival in a rural community in Norway. The community faced challenges related to depopulation and the area's …

By | 6 July 2017 |

Understanding how movement synchrony shapes infants’ choices

This research was conducted by Bahar Tunçgenç, Emma Cohen and Christine Fawcett at the University of Oxford, UK and Uppsala University, Sweden

Summary

Although coordinated movements enable early social interactions, little is known about the effect of movement synchrony throughout human development. This paper reports on a study of infants’ preferences …

By | 16 February 2017 |

Group music training improves children's pro-social skills

This research was conducted by E. Glenn Schellenberg, Kathleen A. Coriggall, Sebastian P. Dys and Tina Malti at the University of Toronto Mississauga, Canada

Summary

This study investigated whether group music training in early childhood is associated with improved pro-social skills. The researchers followed 38 Canadian eight- and nine-year olds over …

By | 14 January 2016 |