Three big ideas for diversifying arts audiences

This research was conducted by Birgit Regina Mandel at the University of Hildesheim, Germany.

Summary

This paper charts an initiative called 'Intercultural Audience Development' designed to broaden and diversify the audiences for elite arts institutions in Germany. It found that diversification only happens when changes are made to the programming and …

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 …

Cultural amenities attract highly skilled workers

This research was conducted by Oliver Falck and three others at the University of Munich and other universities

Summary

This research looked at German data to demonstrate that cultural amenities play an important role in attracting highly skilled workers to a location. This leads to yet more highly skilled people moving …

By | 19 November 2018 |

The emotional power of poetry and its impact on our brains

This research was conducted by Eugen Wassiliwizky, Valentin WagnerStefan Koelsch, and Winfried Menninghaus at Frankfurt am Main, and Thomas Jacobson at Helmut Schmidt University, Germany.

Summary

It is widely accepted that music can engage us, triggering emotional responses such us “chills” and “goosebumps”. In this study, …

By | 1 February 2018 |

Music training can help children cope with stress

This research was conducted by Ingo Roden, Florian D. Zepf, Gunter Kreutz, Dietmar Grube and Stephan Bongard at Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg and two other universities in Germany and Australia

Summary

This study attempted to understand how different interventions might reduce the aggressive behaviour of children. A group of primary …

By | 26 January 2017 |

Playing a musical instrument increases educational attainment

This research was conducted by Philip Yang at Eberhard Karls University, Germany

Summary

This research used a survey of German teenagers to investigate the relationship between educational attainment and playing a musical instrument, either in early childhood or during one’s teenage years. The survey asked a sample of 17 year-olds a …

By | 2 March 2016 |

Music reduces stress during medical procedures

This research was conducted by N. Schneider, M. Schedlowski, T. H. Schürmeyer and H. Becke at Hannover Medical School, Germany

Summary

Hospital tests and treatments can be extremely stressful for patients, which can lead to pain, medical complications and unreliable test results. Tests used to diagnose serious medical conditions often involve …

By | 28 January 2016 |

How art changes your brain

This research was conducted by Anne Bolwerk and four others at University Hospital Erlangen and Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany

Summary

Looking at art can invoke strong emotions, but can it actually change the connections you make in your brain? Researchers in Germany recruited 28 adults and randomly assigned them into either evaluating …

By | 7 December 2015 |

Entrance fees deter people of low socio-economic status from visiting museums

This research was conducted by Volker Kirchberg at the University of Lüneburg, Germany.

Summary

This paper used data from a survey of German adults who were asked about what motivated them to attend (or not attend) museums. The survey, carried out in 1995, randomly selected a representative sample of 1,080 …

By | 5 May 2015 |

How parents shape the reading habits of their children

This research was conducted by Sabine Wollscheid at the Norwegian Knowledge Centre for the Health Services, Norway

Summary

This paper explored the impact of parents’ reading patterns on their children’s reading habits. Drawing on a sample of 757 school-aged children living in two-parent households in Germany, the research demonstrated that parents’ …

By | 5 May 2015 |