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 …

The best way to attract donations is by making it easy to do and easy to justify

This research was conducted by Caroline Moraes, Athanasia Daskalopoulou and Isabelle Szmigin at the University of Birmingham and the University of Liverpool

Summary

This paper used in-depth interviews to reveal the reasons, emotions, and habits that underpin why people make voluntary donations to arts organisations. Perhaps more important were the …

Help prevent depression in old age by staying culturally active

This research was conducted by Daisy Fancourt and Urszula Tymoszuk at University College London.

Summary

This paper explored whether cultural attendance by older adults is associated with a reduced risk of developing depression. The paper considered attendance to comprise visits to the theatre, concerts or opera, the cinema and art …

Ticket sales data reveals the exclusivity of activities like ballet and literary events

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

Summary

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 …

Thinking about cultural engagement in terms of capabilities and ecologies

This research was conducted by Jonathan Gross and Nick Wilson at King’s College London

Summary

This paper proposes a new way to think about the role and purpose of cultural policy and arts administration: the fulfilment of people’s cultural capabilities. This proposal comes out of a critique of existing ways to …

Using the arts to enhance communication in dementia care

This research was conducted by Gill Windle and six others at Bangor University and four other institutions.

Summary

This paper examined the results of four sessions of ‘Creative Conversations’: an arts-based intervention for care staff development. The 'Conversations' improved staff skills and confidence, enabling meaningful interactions that were ‘creative, ‘in …

Understanding the relationship between happiness and arts attendance

This research was conducted by Chris Hand at Kingston University.

Summary

This research took data from two years of the Taking Part survey (2012-2013) and compared people’s happiness levels with their arts attendance. The research was therefore based on a data set of more than 7,000 people. Overall there was …

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 …

Dance can improve quality of life for those with Parkinson’s Disease

This research was conducted by Alice Davies and Ian Patrick Noonan at King’s College London.

Summary

Parkinson’s Disease frequently impacts the balance and gait of sufferers and participation in dance programmes has been shown to generate improvements in patients. This article consolidates the existing literature on the topic. It looks …

The arts engagement barriers faced by those with anxiety or depression

This research was conducted by Daisy Fancourt, Louise Baxter and Fabiana Lorencatto at University College London

Summary

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 …