Designed to accompany the document, Why Should Government Support the Arts? this compendium of research provides links to numerous studies revealing the value of the arts and the many benefits that they provide to communities across America. It also serves as a useful primer on key research about the cultural sector. For additional information about the arts or state arts agencies, visit the Research and Advocacy Tools sections of the NASAA website.
- State Funding for the Arts
- Economic Benefits
- Educational and Work-Force Benefits
- Civic Benefits
- Public Opinion
State Funding for the Arts
State Arts Agency Funding in Fiscal Year 2010
This press release summarizes the legislative funding appropriated to state arts agencies in each of the 56 states and jurisdictions. It includes state-by-state figures and trends over time.
Public Funding for the Arts: 2009 Update
See page 17 of this Grantmakers in the Arts "Vital Signs" article for a summary of federal, state and local arts funding.
Economic Benefits
National Governors Association Reports
This series of research reports, compiled in collaboration with NASAA and the National Endowment for the Arts, summarizes how the arts and creative industries contribute to state economic competitiveness. Specific reports address rural economic development, global trade, work-force development and literacy.
State Economic Impact Studies
These state-level studies document the composition, scope and impact of the creative industries in various states.
States and the Creative Economy
The benefits states derive from including the arts in economic development policy are described in this brief, which also reviews the roles state arts agencies play.
Creativity and Neighborhood Development: Strategies for Community Investment
These resources from The Reinvestment Fund, a Philadelphia-based capital investment fund, outline the role that the arts play in community revitalization.
Arts & Economic Prosperity
This Americans for the Arts study estimates the economic size and impact of the nonprofit arts sector.
Creative Industries: Business & Employment in the Arts
Based on Dunn & Bradstreet data, this ongoing Americans for the Arts study tallies creative businesses and their total employment.
Educational and Work-Force Benefits
Critical Evidence: How the Arts Benefit Student Achievement
Policymakers, educators, parents and advocates will find factual, nontechnical descriptions of the value of arts in learning in this concise research summary.
A Research Based Communication Tool Kit
The importance of arts education is confirmed and clarified in this comprehensive summary of rigorous research, program models and communications templates.
Critical Links: Learning in the Arts and Student Academic and Social Development
Produced by the Arts Education Partnership, this anthology of 62 research studies examines the effects of arts learning on students' social and academic skills.
How Creativity, Education and the Arts Shape a Modern Economy
The Education Commission of the States and Sir Ken Robinson review the importance of the arts and creativity to a 21st-century work force.
Ready to Innovate
Conducted by The Conference Board and Americans for the Arts, this survey of top business executives highlights the need for creative thinking and innovation skills in the modern marketplace.
Staying in School: Arts Education and New York City High School Graduation Rates
This report examines the relationship between school-based arts education and high school graduation rates. The findings, based on New York City Department of Education data, show that the arts play a key role in keeping students in high school and graduating on time.
The Imagine Nation
This website documents the desire of American voters to provide arts education that teaches the skills of imagination and innovation in the classroom.
Gaining the Arts Advantage: Lessons from School Districts that Value Arts Education
Case studies and profiles of 91 school districts throughout the United States that have meaningfully integrated the arts into learning are featured in this report.
Civic Benefits
Community Arts Network
This portal to the field of community arts compiles documentation, research and educational information about the role of the arts in community development.
Social Impact of the Arts Project
This initiative conducts empirical research on the role of arts and culture in American cities and on the links between cultural engagement and community well-being.
Creativity and Neighborhood Development: Strategies for Community Investment
The Reinvestment Fund, a Philadelphia-based capital investment fund, provides strategies that outline the role the arts play in community revitalization.
Urban Institute Research
The Urban Institute has conducted several initiatives documenting the role of the arts in community and neighborhood vitality.
Art-Goers in Their Communities
In this Research Note from the National Endowment for the Arts, the civic benefits associated with arts activity are reviewed.
The Arts and Civic Engagement
The relationship between arts participation and other forms of civic engagement is documented in this monograph by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Animating Democracy
This Americans for the Arts initiative has produced research and case studies documenting how the arts enhance public dialogue, civic engagement and participation in democracy.
Arts in Aging
The benefits of involvement in the arts for older Americans are documented in this compilation of resources.
Arts in Health: A Review of the Medical Literature
This review shows how the arts support wellness, lead to positive patient outcomes in clinical settings, and strengthen the services of medical providers and health care facilities.
The Arts in Times of Trauma
The role of the arts in community healing during times of crisis is described in this monograph.
Public Opinion
The Imagine Nation
This website documents the desire of American voters to provide arts education that teaches the skills of imagination and innovation in the classroom.
Harris Poll
The attitudes of Americans toward arts education and its effects on children and schools are profiled in this opinion poll.
Survey of Public Participation in the Arts
The 2002 edition of this longitudinal study documents a broad demand for more arts participation and attendance among American residents.