Based on the analysis of 270 studies pertaining to audiences of the performing arts and visitors to museums, this critical review presents a social profile of the culture consuming public and evaluates the quality and usefulness of audience research. The review offers the following information arranged in four chapters: a description of the basic…

A study of U.S. high school students surveyed by Project Talent in 1960 and followed up 11 years later showed that familiarity with and interest in high culture has a significant positive effect on educational attainment, college attendance, college completion, graduate attendance, and marital selection for men and women. (Author/RM)

Explores Black and White attendance in American art events. Blacks generally participated more in Afro-American events, Whites in Euro-American. Differences greatest in public consumption, smaller in private. Assesses cultural convergence and competition theories with survey data. Discusses need for middle-class minorities to cultivate membership…

Reviews research indicating that formal educational attainment is the major predictor of a person's involvement in the arts and cultural activities. Speculates on the importance of aesthetic education to the individual's intellectual development and economic welfare. Looks at the school's role in providing equal aesthetic opportunity. Proposes…