Arts Participation and Race/Ethnicity. An Analysis of 1982, 1985, and 1992 SPPA Surveys.

National Endowment for the Arts, The Nancy Hanks Center, 100 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC 20506-0001.

N

75

Art Appreciation; Audience Analysis; Audience Participation; Audience Response; Audiences; Community Education; Cultural Activities; Dance; Fine Arts; Group Behavior; Music; Music Appreciation; Popular Culture; Racial Differences; Racial Factors; Social Science Research; Theater Arts; Visual Arts

This report analyzes data from the 1982, 1985, and 1992 Surveys of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA). Analysis focuses on the role of race/ethnicity in arts participation. Arts participation is defined as involvement in a listed activity at least once in the past 12 months. Race is defined along categories used by the U.S. Bureau of Census. Selected findings indicate: (1) Attendance rates at live performing and visual arts activities are low for members of all races. In some cases, minority group attendance is increasing at rates faster than white attendance. (2) Differences between white and minority participation are smaller for arts participation through media. (3) Frequency-of-Participation analysis indicates that although whites are more likely to attend or watch than members of other races, the percentage of one-time attenders is much higher than for those of other groups. Minority individuals are more likely than whites to participate frequently. (4) The majority of SPPA respondents do not participate personally in the creation of visual, performing, or literary art. In general, respondents display highest personal participation rates for weaving, quilting, needlepoint, and sewing. (5) All races and ethnicities are more likely to have taken music lessons and classes in art appreciation/history than in and other artistic discipline. (6) Members of each racial group express interest in many types of music. However, certain types of music are preferred by members of one group more than by members of other groups. (7) There is a general similarity among members of each race in terms of their desire for more arts activities. (8) The effect of sociodemographics is variable and related to such things as content of the art form and venue in which the art form is presented. (9) Aside from race, educational attainment and income are key predictors of participation for all races. (MM)

1996

ED398164