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 Ben Fletcher-Watson and Shaun May at the University of Edinburgh and the University of Kent
This paper used the case study of the UK’s Autism Arts Festival in 2017 to outline the components and characteristics of relaxed performances. During a relaxed performance the audience is …
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 Jari Salo, Mikko Lankinen and Matti Mäntymäki at the University of Oulu and University of Turku, Finland
By talking to music executives and music fans in Finland this study found five motives for using social media to connect with artists and other fans: accessing content, …
This research was conducted by Pascal Courty and Fenghua Zhang at the University of Victoria, Canada and Wuhan University, China
This paper analysed survey data to paint a picture of arts engagement in 13 different cities across China. The data was broken down by the demographic characteristics of the individuals …
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 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 Andrea Baez-Montenegro and Maria Devesa-Fernandez at Universidad Austral de Chile and Universidad de Valladolid, Spain
This paper examined the relationships between motivation, satisfaction and loyalty for attendees to the Valdivia International Film Festival in Chile. The research identified three categories of motivation (one relating to …
This research was conducted by Shinwon Noh and Pamela S. Tolbert at Pace University and Cornell University, USA
This paper examined the effects of a museum’s identity on audience behaviour. The study divided audiences into critics, connoisseurs and casual consumers. It charted the way that different US museums classified themselves, …
This research was conducted by Birgit Regina Mandel at the University of Hildesheim, Germany.
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 …
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 …