Cultural Consumption Barometre 2024

The National Institute for Cultural Research and Training (INCFC) launched the 'Cultural Consumption Barometre 2024.Dynamics of cultural consumption types and the role of cultural education'.   The study which analyzes the role of culture and cultural education in contemporary society and provides current data on cultural consumption in public and non-public spaces, is being carried out within the National Conference of Cultural Managers, organised by INCFC.   The volume's coordinators, INCFC's general director, associate professor Dr.Carmen Croitoru, and INCFC's research director, Dr. Anca Becut Marinescu, together with prof. Dr.Catalin Stoica, Faculty of Political Science - SNSPA and sociologist Dan Jurcan - director of the Research Department, Romanian Institute for Evaluation and Strategy (IRES)presented the main results of the barometre and discussed the evolution of cultural consumption in the last ten years, emphasizing the importance of the volume's central theme.   Structured in three chapters - 'The role of culture and cultural education' ' Cultural consumption in the public space. Typologies of consumption in the context of the dynamics of values' and ' Consumption mass media habits in accessing cultural content' - the Barometre of Cultural Consumption 2024 approaches the topic of cultural education through statistics data, presenting its benefits at the same time.   According to the barometre, at the level of 2024, the analysis shows that 67% of the interviewees and their children did not take part in any activities of cultural education, despite the high level of understanding the importance of such practice.   Even so, for the interviewees who took part in such activities, for 78% the most important benefit was that of direct learning, information gathering and new notions about art and culture, for 70% the desire to find out more information brought a better involvement in different cultural initiatives, and for 42% cultural education determined an increase in school performance among their children.   According to the study, interest in heritage sites remains high, with 66% of respondents visiting historical monuments and archaeological sites at least one a year, and 42% visiting museums, exhibitions or art galleries. At the same time, the frequency of watching movies at the cinema at least once a year was 38% in 2024. Participation in theatre performances remained at the level of 2023 : 25% of respondents went to the theatre at least once in 2024.   The non-public continues to occupy the largest share of respondents, the analysis highlighting the fact that non-participation linked to access to cultural offerings, dependent either on its frequency - in the case of festivals and fairs that are not organised permanently - or on access to specific infrastructure or educational barriers, as in the case with the consumption of cult music.   Participation in activities with a community dimension (local holidays/events, religious services/going to church, meetings with relatives and friends) continues to attract a large percentage of respondents.   The results of the study confirm the hypothesis regarding the cultural change we are witnessing, in which friendships and ways of spending free time are increasingly important.   The 2024 Cultural Consumption Barometre highlights the absence of coherent public policies and adequate funding, essential factors for ensuring a real and sustainable impact of culture on society, a context in which the authors propose the development of integrated public policies, aimed at supporting educational initiatives, stimulating inter-institutional collaboration and promoting sustainable partnership between the fields of culture, education and community.   The Cultural Consumption Barometre - 2024 was conducted on a nationally representative sample of 1,064 people, representative of the population aged 18 and over, with a maximum error of +/- 3.1% at a confidence level of 95%. The questionnaire was administered using the CATI method, on a simple, random sample, by generating telephone numbers with a valid format on the territory of Romania, using the RDD (random digit dialing)method.   Under the Ministry of Culture, the National Institute for Cultural Research and Training aims to study, research and provide statistical data for the field of culture, as well as the continuous training of those who choose a career in the cultural occupational sector.   The National Conference of Cultural Managers represents since 2014 the most important national platform for consultation, dialogue and exchange of good practices for managers from public cultural institutions, specialists in cultural management and entrepreneurship, representatives of the academic environment and central and local authorities.