Cultural Participation and Individual Quality of Life: A Review of Research Findings

Objectives

To examine the research evidence for the contribution of cultural participation to individual quality of life; to discuss the utility of different types of QOL conceptualisation and measurement for cultural policy making.

Materials and Methods

A literature review of English language publications over the decade from 1995.

Results

There are few extant QOL studies, and very little empirical evidence to support the claims made by policymakers about culture and individual QOL.

Conclusions

The article suggests that a multi-dimensional, rather than a global, conceptualisation of QOL is best suited to the cultural policymaking context. Securing findings generalisable across all cultural forms, project types and all individuals or populations is not an achievable goal. Methodologies need to be developed and tested to understand how and why cultural participation affects individual QOL domains and these need to take into account differences in types of cultural participation, the quality of the experience, and between individuals in different social circumstances and in different life stages.