Finally, a key element to be understood is how people engage in cultural activities. Is there any significant difference between a superficial and an indepth reading of a newspaper, or for that matter, reading a technical manual, newspaper, or great work of literature? Or between a oneoff, [“accidental”] ‘opportunistic’ visit to a museum and repeated “passionate” visits? If surveys fail to take this into account, albeit possibly due to the – comprehensible – boundaries imposed by time and budget constraints (Pronovost, 2002), the understanding of the actual levels of engagement in cultural participation of the respondents is compromised, with results that can be misleading. To address this issue, ESSnet (2011:223) distinguishes between attending/ receiving, amateur practice, and social participation/volunteering. Some of the distinction among these three kinds of participation may be eroded as people take on different roles during, for example, an informal gathering of musicians in which each in turn plays and exchanges ideas with the others. 2.1.2
Different patterns of participation
Participation can follow different patterns; the intuitive, almost obvious distinction between active and passive participation, has been further developed and nuanced in a number of studies but may be inadequate and partly reflects language. The word “participation” itself has the same meaning (“taking part”) but different nuances (active or passive attitude) in English and French; the commonly accepted meaning of “participation” thus covers both “attendance” (passive) and “participation” (active). Further distinctions are found, for instance, with Dutch-speaking authors (Schuster, 2007). Another two-fold distinction is between creative and receptive participation (Australian Expert Group in Industry Studies, 2004). Here creative participation is associated with making, creating, organizing, initiating, producing and facilitating arts activities and indicates active engagement; this definition also includes intermediary, supply and enabling participation (e.g. film distribution, theatre management, curatorial activities, and supportive involvement of family). Receptive participation involves receiving, using, purchasing or observing a culture or leisure event or product. The literature provides a number of triple distinctions of possible participation patterns. The LEG group writes about attending/receiving, performance/production of amateurs, and interaction (Eurostat, 2000). This and other definitions include both professional and amateur practice, without distinction. The 2009 UNESCO FCS states that participation mainly refers to taking part in amateur or unpaid activity, as opposed to the term consumption, normally used when referring to “an activity for which the consumer has given some monetary payment” (UNESCO-UIS, 2009). Cultural participation does not regard activities carried out for employment purposes, e.g. the group visiting a museum is participating in cultural activities; the paid museum guide is not (Ibid). Brown (2004) suggests the existence of five modes of arts participation, distinguished according to the degree of involvement and creative control of individuals in cultural practices: i)
Inventive Arts Participation engages the mind, body and spirit in an act of artistic creation that is unique and idiosyncratic, regardless of skill level.
ii) Interpretive Arts Participation is a creative act of self-expression that brings alive and adds value to pre-existing works of art, either individually or collaboratively. iii) Curatorial Arts Participation is the creative act of purposefully selecting, organizing and collecting art to the satisfaction of one’s own artistic sensibility.
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