THE ART OF MEASURING THE ARTS

In: The annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Band 373, S. 141-155

Abstract

The transition to post-industr'ism is marked by increasing pol'al concern for the quality of life. The arts, an important determinant of the quality of life, are affected by this transition in the following ways: growth of mass participation in cultural activities; elaboration of the instit'al framework of the arts; formation of a 'culture lobby'; & pol'alization. Decisionmakers in gov, business, res, & educ must begin to take into account, as one entry in their cost-benefit ledgers, the cultural consequences of their actions. A cultural data system is needed to provide information for rational policy-making in the cultural field & to assist those outside the field in understanding their impact on it. A tentative model is constructed to facilitate the monitoring of qualitative, as well as quantitative, changes in the arts in contemporary society. 15 variables are suggested, which, taken together, comprise an index of the state of health of a nation's culture. Ways are proposed by which changes in these variables can be statistically measured. HA.