INCFC: Cultural Consumption Has Shifted to the Online and Non-Public Space

The National Institute for Cultural Research and Training (INCFC) is launching the Cultural Consumption Barometer 2022 at the end of this week. Cultural Participation and Democratic Perspectives, the most extensive national study measuring cultural consumer practices. The event will take place at the National Theater Festival and will be held at ARCUB. Alongside renowned guests from the academic field and cultural professionals, the coordinators of the study, Prof. Dr. Carmen Croitoru - General Director of INCFC, and Dr. Anda Becuţ Marinescu - Research Director of INCFC, will present the main results of the Barometer, emphasizing the relationship between cultural values, educational quality, and democratic principles at the societal level.

The Cultural Consumption Barometer 2022 evaluates the changes in cultural consumption practices, emphasizing its characteristics among young people and, for the first time in Romania, analyzes the relationship between culture and democracy. The data provided confirm the trends identified during the pandemic period, namely the predominant orientation of cultural consumption towards the online environment and non-public spaces. In terms of cultural consumption in public spaces, the effects of the pandemic are considerable, with the only increase being a 14-percentage-point increase in the visitation of historical monuments or archaeological sites, at least once a year (59% of respondents in 2022, compared to 45% in 2019). Decreases in public cultural consumption are as follows: attendance of theater performances dropped from 29% in 2019 to 20% in 2022, cinema attendance dropped from 35% in 2019 to 26% in 2022, going to the library to read/borrow books dropped from 28% in 2019 to 17% in 2022, and visiting museums, exhibitions, or art galleries dropped from 38% in 2019 to 30% in 2022.

Beyond the pandemic context, the declines in public cultural consumption can also be explained by the emphasis on cultural consumption barriers, which affect all consumer categories. The barriers identified as increasing in recent years and intensified after the pandemic period are barriers to the reception of culture. Solutions to overcome these barriers include increasing interest in culture and understanding cultural products and artistic creations through sustained education for children and young people, as well as for adults. The study extensively analyzes cultural activities in non-public spaces, activities practiced on the internet, and the connection between cultural consumption practices and democratic participation. This edition of the Barometer, the 18th one, is launched after a three-year hiatus due to the social and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. During this entire period, from 2020 to the present, the Barometer has been replaced by studies measuring participation trends.

The Cultural Consumption Barometer 2022 study is based on an opinion poll conducted by the Romanian Institute for Evaluation and Strategy (IRES) in September-October 2022 on a representative national sample for the population aged 18 and over. The National Institute for Cultural Research and Training (INCFC), under the Ministry of Culture, is the only national institute with objectives related to the study, research, and provision of statistical data in the field of culture, as well as the continuous training of those pursuing a career in the cultural occupational sector.