Professor Pat Thomson, CLA’s Senior Evidence Associate, reports on a longitudinal study tracking students aspiring to build careers in the creative arts and what shapes these aspirations. The findings are relevant for our own UK context and highlight ongoing issues around a lack of diversity in the creative industries.
Gore, J., Gibson, S., Fray, L., Smith, M. and Holmes, K. (2019), Fostering Diversity in the Creative Arts by Addressing Students’ Capacity to Aspire. Journal of Creative Behaviour, 53 (4) 519-530. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.232
This Australian longitudinal study tracked over 6,000 government school students aged eight to eighteen over four years, investigating who aspired to creative arts careers and what factors shaped these aspirations. The results reveal concerning patterns that arts educators in the UK will recognise from their own contexts.
The study found that arts-related careers were remarkably popular among students, representing the highest level of interest across all occupational categories mentioned. However, this apparent enthusiasm masks a troubling lack of diversity. Using logistic regression analysis, the researchers identified that being female, high achieving, from an English-speaking background, possessing high cultural capital, and attending more advantaged schools were all significant predictors of interest in the arts. These findings suggest that without intervention, existing patterns of under-representation in the professional arts will carry on.
Gender was one of the strongest predictors, with females more than twice as likely as males to express interest in arts careers. This aligned with participation patterns showing that nearly half of girls aged five to fourteen participated in cultural activities outside school, compared to just a quarter of boys. The researchers suggest that constructions of masculinity may lead some boys to view arts careers as incompatible with their developing sense of appropriate future paths, effectively circumscribing their aspirations before they fully form.
Socioeconomic status (SES) played a crucial role, with students from the highest socioeconomic quartile showing the greatest interest in arts careers. This pattern reflects broader inequalities in arts participation in Australia (and the UK) and likely relates to the precarious employment conditions and limited financial rewards typically associated with arts careers. Students from less advantaged backgrounds may be less able to contemplate uncertain occupational futures, regardless of their interests or talents.
Cultural capital, strongly associated with SES, was the strongest aspirational predictor after gender, measured through participation in activities such as attending galleries, concerts, and theatre, playing instruments, and discussing books and art. Students with the highest levels of such participation were nearly three times more likely to aspire to arts careers than those with the lowest levels of cultural capital. Crucially, this effect was not mediated by school factors, suggesting that family privilege operates independently of careers education in schools.
Cultural and linguistic diversity were also significant. Students from EAL backgrounds were substantially less likely to aspire to arts careers than their English-speaking peers. This result remained significant even when controlling for school-related factors, suggesting deeply embedded cultural barriers. The researchers used Appadurai’s concept of the “capacity to aspire,” to argue that aspirations are collectively constructed within particular social and cultural conditions rather than being purely individual choices. Those with greater advantages not only had more developed understandings of the pathways needed to realise their aspirations but also had ongoing access to broader ranges of experiences that served as useful encouragement, information and guidance.
School-related factors proved significant in complex ways. Students attending schools in the highest quartile of socio-educational advantage and those with higher prior academic achievement were more likely to express interest in arts careers. When these school factors were included in the analysis, the effect of school location disappeared, suggesting that the school itself, rather than geography, matters most. This raises important questions about the quality and comprehensiveness of arts provision in different school contexts.
The study also tracked changes over time, revealing a concerning decline in arts aspirations among the older high school students, particularly those in Year Nine. The researchers suggest this reflects both increased awareness of the challenges associated with arts careers and the circumscription of options as students approach subject choices that determine future pathways. Interestingly, students in Years Five through Eight showed the highest levels of arts interest, suggesting this period represents a crucial window for support and intervention.
For UK arts educators, these findings have considerable resonance. The Australian patterns identified suggest that current approaches to arts and cultural education risk perpetuating existing inequalities unless deliberate interventions occur during schooling. The researchers argue for “ground up” approaches that build capacity among under-represented groups while aspirations are still forming. They point to school-based initiatives such as artist-in-residence programmes and teacher professional development as promising strategies. Their key insight is that fostering diversity in the arts requires more than supporting those who already aspire to arts careers; it demands actively building the capacity to aspire among students who might otherwise never consider such pathways viable or available to them.
