Attachment I - 2012 SPPA Results

how a nation engages with art
highlights from the 2012 survey of public participation in the arts

national endowment for the arts

how a nation engages with art
highlights from the 2012 survey of public participation in the arts

nea research report #57
september 2013

Research Report #57 September 2013
National Endowment for the Arts
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20506
Telephone: 202-682-5400
arts.gov
Produced by the Office of Research & Analysis
Sunil Iyengar, Director
Staff contributors: Steven Shewfelt, Roman Ivanchenko, Melissa Menzer,
and Tamika Shingler. The Office of Research & Analysis also wishes to thank
Joanna Woronkowicz and Elisabeth Ahrendt.
Editorial assistance by Rebecca Gross
Designed by Beth Schlenoff
Front cover photo: Young folklorico dancers perform in Ajo, Arizona, to celebrate
the Smithsonian’s Between Fences traveling exhibit. Photo by Jewel Clearwater
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available in the PDF version
of this report.

202-682-5496 Voice/TTY
(a device for individuals who are deaf or hearing-impaired)
Individuals who do not use conventional print materials may contact the
Arts Endowment’s Office for Accessibility at 202-682-5532 to obtain this
publication in an alternate format.
This publication is available free of charge in print or PDF format at arts.gov,
the website of the National Endowment for the Arts.

Contents

4

Preface

5

About the Survey

6

About this Report

8

Topline Statistics for 2012: A Year in Arts Participation

11

I. Attending Arts Events and Activities

12

Performing Arts Attendance

20

Visual Arts and Other Attendance

24

II. Reading Books and Literature

25

Novels and Short Stories, Poetry, and Plays

27

Books in General

28

III. Consuming Art through Electronic Media

28

Traditional Media and the Internet

29

Handheld and Mobile Devices

32

IV. Making and Sharing Art

33

Sharing Art with Others

34

Creating, Performing, or Preserving Art

35

V. Participating in Arts Learning

36

In- and Out-of-School Classes or Lessons

40

Other Types of Arts Learning

42

Conclusions

45

Notes

Preface

The Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA) is the
nation’s largest and most reliable survey of how American adults (ages 18
and older) engage with the arts. On behalf of the National Endowment
for the Arts (NEA), the United States Census Bureau has conducted the
survey six times since 1982, with the most recent wave occurring in 2012.
This report presents initial summary findings from the 2012 survey year.
A more comprehensive summary report, focusing on a decade of trends
revealed by the survey (2002–2012), will be available in 2014.
The study of arts participation patterns is cogent to arts organizations,
arts funders, and cultural economists—who have used prior surveys
to inform their understanding about arts audiences or to gauge public
demand for specific arts experiences. At a more fundamental level, the
survey showcases the stunning plurality of art forms, genres, venues, and
events and activities that constitute arts participation as a whole. This
information can be reviewed alongside—and in direct relationship to—
other key variables about our nation’s adult population: what it looks
like, how it behaves, and how it changes over time.
Federal data on arts participation, therefore, can contribute to a more
accurate profile of our citizenry. More accurate because, without
addressing the proclivities of Americans from all backgrounds to explore,
imagine, and create, we would have, at best, an imperfect grasp of their
values and aspirations. The SPPA thus offers policy-makers, journalists,
educators, and the broader public a rare glimpse of a dimension of
American life that surely deserves more weight in our national discourse.
Office of Research & Analysis
National Endowment for the Arts
September 2013

4 • national endowment for the arts

About the Survey

The NEA survey was administered in July 2012 as a
supplement to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey
(CPS), and therefore is nationally representative. The 2012 SPPA
included two core components: a questionnaire used in previous years
to ask about arts attendance; and a new, experimental module on arts
attendance. In addition, the survey included five modules designed to
capture other types of arts participation as well as participation in other
leisure activities. (To view the 2012 SPPA questionnaire, go to: arts.gov/
publications/2012-sppa-questionnaire.) Respondents were randomly
assigned to either of the survey’s core questionnaires, and then were
randomly assigned to two of the remaining five SPPA modules. Most
SPPA questions address arts participation that occurred in the 12-month
period prior to the survey’s completion. The total sample size of the
2012 SPPA was 37,266 U.S. adults, ages 18 and over, of which 31.7 percent
were represented by proxy respondents. The 2012 SPPA had a household
response rate of 74.8 percent. To permit analysis of arts attendance
and voluntary reading trends across survey years (e.g., comparisons
with the 2008 SPPA), Sections I and II of this report rely on the Core 1
questionnaire rather than on Core 2, although, where noted, findings
from Core 2 are occasionally presented.

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 5

About this Report

Since 1982, the year in which Americans took the first
Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA), the survey has asked
questions about five broad areas, in addition to asking about a host of
non-arts-related activities. The five areas are:
•
•
•
•
•

Arts Attendance
Reading Literary Works
Arts Consumption through Electronic Media
Arts Creation and Performance
Arts Learning

Together, these modes of engagement make up a single dimension of
human and social behavior that the SPPA has sought to capture. Yet
despite the survey’s longevity, it is difficult to compute an index or grand
total that can allow us to track changes in arts participation over time—if
by “participation” we mean such diverse and evolving categories as listed
above. There are two chief reasons for this difficulty.
The first is that each of the five modes of arts participation has taken
on new meaning over the 30-year period since the survey was first
conducted. Changes in art forms, technology, and even U.S. demographics
have led to new or different questions being asked in each of these topic
areas. The 2012 survey in particular was marked by numerous changes,
which benefited from consultations with arts and cultural researchers,
practitioners, and policy-makers. A modular approach to the survey, and
a larger sample size, afforded the opportunity for more questions about
each mode of arts participation.
The second reason has to do with the NEA’s conventional method of
reporting findings from the SPPA. Perhaps because several key questions
about arts attendance and reading have remained constant over time,
NEA research on arts participation has tended to focus on those two
modes, notwithstanding the occasional appearance of NEA reports
on arts engagement via media, art-making, or arts-related learning.
Yet even when reviewing the numbers for live arts attendance and
reading, findings about other modes of arts involvement (e.g., how many
adults downloaded literature or went to see a movie) can be vital to
understanding arts participation as a whole.
This report offers statistics about U.S. adult participation in the arts
through each of the five modes (see “Top-Line Statistics for 2012: A Year
in Arts Participation,” page 8). Because of the survey’s modular design,
however, certain questions were not combined for the purpose of the
analyses reported here.

6 • national endowment for the arts

For example, questions about arts creation and performance are in two
separate modules of the survey (which, incidentally, now include items
about sharing art with others). Thus, one cannot arrive at an aggregate
figure for this mode of participation without advanced statistical
modeling, which is beyond the scope of this report. Similarly, the rate
of moviegoing is reported in the section about arts attendance; and yet,
because it came from a different module of the survey than did questions
about visual and performing arts attendance, it was not combined with
those responses to produce a total percentage.
Despite these limitations, the report offers in each section a vivid
snapshot of arts participation by mode and art form. Where such
comparisons are appropriate and informative, the report also describes
changes in arts participation rates since 2008—both for the general
population and for demographic subgroups. Thus, trend data are
provided in Sections I (“Arts Attendance”) and II (“Reading Books and
Literature”). For 2012 alone, “top-line” statistics preceding Section I
show cumulative rates of adult participation in seven broad categories,
wherever arts activities could be aggregated for analysis.
The demographic variables treated in this report are gender, race or
ethnicity, age, and level of educational attainment. Unless otherwise
specified, whenever year-over-year trends or changes within
demographic subgroups are reported in the text, those differences are
statistically significant at the 90 percent or 95 percent confidence level,
as noted in the companion charts or tables. Such changes are discussed
selectively, insofar as they contribute to a distinct narrative thread for
each mode of arts participation.
An even more detailed summary report is scheduled for publication
in early 2014. That report will compare arts participation patterns and
related demographic variables from 2002 to 2012, covering a decade
of arts engagement. The report will also explore results from survey
questions that have not been referenced heavily in this report, including
the SPPA 2012’s experimental module on arts attendance. Unlike
the present report, it will attempt to report aggregate figures for arts
participation questions across survey modules. And, finally, it will provide
some degree of geographic analysis.
Beyond these two reports, the NEA seeks actively to promote availability
of the raw data and metadata associated with the SPPA, not just for 2012
but for all prior survey years. This is being done through concurrent
announcements of data files and user’s guides on the NEA website,
through a SPPA data visualization “challenge,” and through an appeal to
researchers to analyze this new dataset as part of the NEA’s Research: Art
Works grants program. Through all these methods, the NEA’s Office of
Research & Analysis aims to broaden and enrich public discourse about
the importance of arts participation in American life.

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 7

Top-Line Statistics for 2012: A Year in
Arts Participation
This section covers summary statistics for rates of arts participation in 2012. It gives aggregate
figures for seven broad categories of participation. Each of the seven categories represents
arts activities that can be combined to produce a single percentage: the share of the U.S. adult
population who did at least one of those activities in the 12 months before the survey. The
categories are listed in descending order by the number of adults who participated. Because of
the survey design, activities could not be merged easily across categories for the purpose of
further aggregation.
Percentage of U.S. Adults Who Participated in the Arts at Least Once During a 12-Month
Period, by General Category of Participation (2012)
Arts Consumption through
Electronic Media

71%
59%

Moviegoing
Voluntary Reading

58%

Art-Making or
Art-Sharing (I)

50%

Visual or Performing Arts
Attendance

49%

Art-Making or
Art-Sharing (II)

48%

Arts Learning through
Classes or Lessons

7%
0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

In this chart, adults are counted multiple times if they participated in more than one category. See page 10 for a list of
the arts activities that make up the two separate categories of “Art-Making or Art-Sharing.” Adult rates for individual
art-making or art-sharing activities are provided in Section IV of this report.

8 • national endowment for the arts

Arts Consumption through Electronic Media
(71 percent of u.s. adults, or 167 million)
Adults are included in this category if they did at least one of
the following types of activity in the preceding 12 months:
Used TV, radio, or the Internet to access art or arts
programming
(61 percent of adults)
Types of art or arts programming may have included:
• Music of any kind (57 percent of adults)
• Ballet, modern, or contemporary dance, or dance programs
or shows (11 percent)
• Programs or information about the visual arts, books, or
writers (14 percent)
• Theater productions, such as a musical or stage play
(7 percent)
• Books, short stories, or novels read aloud (7 percent)
• Opera (4 percent)

Used a DVD or CD player, a record-player, or a tape-player to
watch or listen to music or to programs about theater, dance,
visual arts, or literature
(27 percent of adults)

Moviegoing
(59 percent of u.s. adults, or 139 million)
Adults are included in this category if they went to the movies
at least once in the preceding 12 months.

Voluntary Reading
(58 percent of u.s. adults, or 136 million)
Adults are included in this category if they did at least one of the
following types of reading in the preceding 12 months:
Books not required for work or school
(54 percent of adults)

Used a handheld or mobile device to access art
(38 percent of adults)

Literary reading
(47 percent of adults)

Types of art may have included:
• Music of any kind (34 percent of adults)
• Novels, short stories, or plays (16 percent)
• Visual artworks such as painting, sculpture, graphic design,
or photography (8 percent)
• Theater or dance performances (3 percent)

Types of literature may have included:
• Novels or short stories (45 percent of adults)
• Poetry (7 percent)
• Plays (3 percent)

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 9

Art-Making or Art-Sharing (I)
(50 percent of u.s. adults, or 118 million)

Art-Making or Art-Sharing (II)
(48 percent of u.s. adults, or 113 million)

Adults are included in this category if they did at least one of the
following types of activity in the preceding 12 months:

Adults are included in this category if they did at least one of the
following types of activity in the preceding 12 months:

Created, performed, or shared art through various activities
(50 percent of adults)

E-mailed, posted, or shared artwork
(40 percent of adults)

Types of activity may have included:
• Social dancing (32 percent of adults)
• Weaving, crocheting, quilting, needlepoint, knitting, or sewing
(13 percent)
• Played a musical instrument, either alone or with others
(12 percent)
• Sang, either alone or with others (9 percent)
• Created leatherwork, metalwork, or woodwork (8 percent)
• Created pottery, ceramics, or jewelry (5 percent)
• Acting (1 percent)

Types of artwork may have included:
• Photography (26 percent of adults)
• Music of any kind (21 percent)
• Films or videos (13 percent)
• Other visual artworks such as painting, sculpture, or graphic
design (6 percent)
• Dance of any kind (5 percent)
• Poetry, plays, or novels or short stories (4 percent)

Performed or practiced in a specific art form
(10 percent of adults)
Art forms may have included:
• Dance of any kind (5 percent of adults)
• Choral singing or singing in a choir or glee club (3 percent)
• Classical music (2 percent)
• Latin, Spanish, or salsa music (1 percent)
• Jazz (1 percent)
• Musical or non-musical plays (1 percent)
• Opera (<1 percent)

Visual and Performing Arts Attendance
(49 percent of u.s. adults, or 115 million)
Adults are included in this category if they did at least one of
the following activities in the preceding 12 months:
Attended a visual arts event or activity
(39 percent of adults)
Types of attendance may have included:
• Touring a park, monument, building, or neighborhood for
historic or design purposes (24 percent of adults)
• Attending a visual arts festival or a crafts fair (22 percent)
• Visiting an art museum or gallery (21 percent)
Attended a live performing arts event
(37 percent of adults)
Event types may have included:
• Outdoor performing arts festivals (21 percent of adults)
• Musical or non-musical plays (18 percent)
• Classical music, jazz, or Latin, Spanish, or salsa music
(17 percent)
• Dance of any kind (7 percent)
• Opera (2 percent)

10 • national endowment for the arts

Created photography for artistic purposes or did photo editing
(18 percent of adults)
Created other types of visual artworks, or did scrapbooking or
creative writing
(14 percent of adults)
Created, performed, recorded, edited, or remixed music,
dance, film, or video
(10 percent of adults)

Arts Learning through Classes or Lessons
(7 percent of u.s. adults, or 16 million)
Adults are included in this category if they took a class or
lesson, whether in or out of school, in at least one of the
following subjects in the preceding 12 months:
• Voice training or playing a musical instrument (3 percent
of adults)
• Visual arts such as drawing, painting, pottery, weaving,
or graphic or fashion design (2 percent)
• Dance of any kind (2 percent)
• Creative writing (2 percent)
• Art appreciation or art history (2 percent)
• Photography or filmmaking (1 percent)
• Music appreciation (1 percent)
• Acting or theater (<1 percent)

I. Attending Arts Events and Activities
This section covers attendance at live performing arts events, visual arts activities, movies, and
other types of attendance. Where possible and instructive, comparisons have been made with the
2008 survey findings.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended at Least One Arts Event or Activity,
by General Category (2012)
Movies

59%

39%

Visual Arts

37%

Performing Arts

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

In this chart, adults are counted multiple times if they attended more than one category of event. The
previous page lists the types of visual and performing arts activities reported here.

70%

59%
60%

50%

39%
40%

36%

30%

20%

The SteelStacks campus with the Levitt Pavilion in the foreground in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Photo by Mark Demko
10%

0%

Movies

Visual Arts

Performing
Arts

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 11

changes in arts attendance from
2008 to 2012
Between 2008 and 2012, national rates of
attendance at visual and performing arts
activities dropped slightly, remaining below
2002 levels. In 2012, one in three U.S. adults
(33 percent, or about 78 million) visited an art
museum or gallery or attended at least one of
various types of performing arts events.1
A closer look at individual types of arts
activity shows that theater attendance
(musical and non-musical play-going)
declined significantly since 2008. So did
the share of adults visiting art museums or
galleries or attending crafts fairs or visual
arts festivals.
Notably, non-white and Hispanic groups
upheld their arts attendance rates, and even
showed increases for some activities. And
more adults, from a variety of demographic
groups, went to the movies in 2012 than in
2008.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended at Least One of Various Types of
Arts Performance or Visited an Art Museum or Gallery: 1982–2012
50%

40%

39.0%

41.0%

39.4%
34.6%

33.3%

2008

2012

30%

20%

10%

0%
1982

1992

2002

Performing arts events included: jazz; classical music; opera; musical and non-musical plays; and
ballet. These are all activities for which attendance rates have been tracked since 1982.
The change from 2008 to 2012 is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Performing Arts Activity, by Type
(Excluding Musical and Non-Musical Plays): 2002, 2008, and 2012

Performing Arts Attendance
1) Arts attendance rates held steady (showing
no statistically significant difference) for the
following types of activity between 2008 and
2012:

2002

2008

2012

Classical Music

11.6%

9.3%

8.8%

Jazz

10.8%

7.8%

8.1%

Dance Other than Ballet

6.3%

5.2%

5.6%

NA

4.9%

5.1%

• Classical music (8.8 percent of all adults
nationwide, or 20.7 million people,
attended at least one event in the 2012
survey year)

Ballet

3.9%

2.9%

2.7%

Opera

3.2%

2.1%

2.1%

• Jazz (8.1 percent, or 19.0 million adults)

NA = This question was not asked before 2008.

• Dance other than ballet (5.6 percent, or
13.2 million adults)
• Latin, Spanish, or salsa music (5.1 percent,
or 12.0 million adults)
• Ballet (2.7 percent, or 6.3 million adults)
• Opera (2.1 percent, or 4.9 million adults)

12 • national endowment for the arts

Latin, Spanish, or Salsa Music

Note: None of the changes between 2008 and 2012 are statistically significant.

2) Although overall attendance rates between
2008 and 2012 were unchanged for many
types of arts performance, notable shifts
occurred within demographic subgroups.
• Classical music: Adults between 35 and 54
years of age reduced their attendance. The
oldest adults participated at the highest
levels.
• Jazz: Greater numbers of non-whites and
non-Hispanics (e.g., Asian Americans
and Pacific Islanders) went to these
performances than in 2008. In 2012,
African Americans attended jazz at higher
rates than did whites. Jazz attendance was
also buoyed by an increase in the share of
U.S. immigrants who attended.2

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Classical Music Performance,
by Age: 2008 and 2012
classical music
2008

2012

9.3%

8.8%

18-24

6.9%

6.6%

25-34

7.0%

7.3%

35-44

8.9%

6.4%**

45-54

10.2%

8.2%**

55-64

11.6%

11.0%

65-74

12.2%

14.0%

9.7%

11.0%

all adults
Age

75 and over

**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Jazz Performance, by Race and
Ethnicity: 2008 and 2012
jazz
2008

2012

7.8%

8.1%

Hispanic

3.9%

5.0%

White

8.8%

8.4%

African American

8.6%

11.2%*

Other

4.0%

all adults
Race and Ethnicity

7.4%**

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 13

• Latin, Spanish, or salsa music: African
Americans nearly doubled their attendance
rate. Adults with only “some college”
background also increased attendance.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Latin, Spanish, or Salsa Music
Performance, by Race/Ethnicity and Education: 2008 and 2012
latin music
2008

2012

4.9%

5.1%

17.4%

18.1%

White

3.1%

2.8%

African American

1.6%

3.0%*

Other

2.7%

2.4%

Grade School

8.5%

6.8%

Some High School

5.5%

5.2%

High School Graduate

3.3%

3.4%

Some College

4.0%

5.4%**

College Graduate

6.8%

6.1%

Graduate School

5.8%

6.6%

all adults
Race and Ethnicity
Hispanic

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

14 • national endowment for the arts

• Dance other than ballet: Both Hispanics and
African Americans attended non-ballet
dance performances at higher rates than in
2008. So did adults with only a high school
diploma.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Dance Performance Other than
Ballet, by Race/Ethnicity and Education: 2008 and 2012
dance, non-ballet
2008

2012

5.2%

5.6%

Hispanic

3.2%

4.5%*

White

5.9%

5.9%

African American

3.0%

5.3%**

Other

5.0%

6.1%

Grade School

1.2%

1.7%

Some High School

2.2%

1.2%

High School Graduate

2.2%

3.1%**

Some College

5.8%

6.0%

College Graduate

8.0%

8.3%

Graduate School

12.7%

12.4%

all adults
Race and Ethnicity

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 15

3) Since 2008, attendance rates have declined
for both of the following theatrical events:

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Musical and/or Non-Musical
Play: 2002, 2008, and 2012

• Musical plays (15.2 percent of adults
nationwide, or 35.7 million, attended at
least one event in the 2012 survey year)
• Non-musical plays (8.3 percent, or 19.5
million adults nationwide, attended at
least one event in the 2012 survey year)
4) The decline in musical play attendance
marks the first statistically significant change
in this activity since 1985. Non-musical play
attendance has dropped at a 33 percent rate
over the last decade.3
• Musical plays: From 2008 to 2012,
attendance rates declined for whites, men
and women alike, and 25- to 44-year-olds.
Attendance at musicals was also lower for
the most educated adults, and even for
adults with only “some” high school or
college education.

2008-2012
2002

2008

2012

change

rate of
change

Musical Play

17.1%

16.7%

15.2%

-1.5pp**

-9%**

Non-Musical Play

12.3%

9.4%

8.3%

-1.1pp**

-12%**

pp = percentage points
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Musical Play, by Selected
Demographic Variables: 2008 and 2012
musical theater
2008

2012

16.7%

15.2%**

Male

14.4%

12.9%**

Female

18.9%

17.3%**

8.1%

7.3%

20.0%

18.4%**

8.6%

9.2%

13.4%

11.3%

18-24

14.5%

12.9%

25-34

16.0%

13.6%*

35-44

18.2%

12.9%**

45-54

17.4%

16.8%

55-64

19.5%

19.0%

65-74

18.0%

17.8%

75 and over

10.0%

12.0%

Grade School

1.7%

1.6%

Some High School

5.2%

2.9%**

High School Graduate

8.1%

8.3%

Some College

17.1%

14.6%**

College Graduate

30.1%

26.6%**

Graduate School

37.9%

32.1%**

all adults
Gender

Race and Ethnicity
Hispanic
White
African American
Other
Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

16 • national endowment for the arts

• Non-musical plays: As with musical play
attendance, a smaller proportion of whites,
men and women, and highly educated
adults went to non-musical plays in 2012.
But non-musical attendance also declined
for 18- to 24-year-olds and 55- to 64-yearolds, while musical play attendance did
not.
• For both kinds of plays, non-white
and Hispanic groups sustained their
attendance levels from 2008 to 2012.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Non-Musical Play, by Selected
Demographic Variables: 2008 and 2012
non-musical theater
2008
all adults

2012

9.4%

8.3%**

8.2%

7.2%*

10.6%

9.2%**

Gender
Male
Female
Race and Ethnicity
Hispanic

4.3%

3.5%

11.4%

10.0%**

African American

5.5%

6.2%

Other

6.1%

4.9%

18-24

8.2%

6.3%*

25-34

9.2%

7.5%*

35-44

8.9%

7.3%*

45-54

8.7%

9.5%

55-64

12.3%

65-74

11.0%

10.6%

7.4%

7.8%

70.0%

0.3%

Some High School

2.8%

1.8%

High School Graduate

4.0%

3.9%

Some College

9.0%

7.7%*

College Graduate

17.5%

14.6%**

Graduate School

24.3%

20.0%**

White

Age

75 and over

9.0%**

Highest Level of Educational Attainment
Grade School

-12%

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

decline in nonmusical play
attendance
2008–2012
2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 17

5) One in three adults attended at least one
live music performance of any type (not
solely classical, jazz, or Latin music) in 2012,
the first year such data became available.4
• Live music attendance peaked with young
adults. But every other age group attended
at rates higher than 25 percent—an
exception being the 75-years-and-older
group (20 percent).
• Parks and open-air facilities were the most
common venues for the music, dance, and
theater performances or art exhibits that
adults went to see in 2012, accounting
for 15.4 percent of such activities. The
next most common venues were theaters,
concert halls, and auditoriums (12.3
percent) and restaurants, bars, nightclubs,
and coffee shops (11.7 percent).5

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Live Music Performance (Any
Type), by Age Groups: 2012
live music performance
2012 (not asked in 2008)
all adults

31.6%

Age
18-24

40.6%

25-34

34.2%

35-44

31.8%

45-54

32.9%

55-64

28.5%

65-74

27.4%

75 and over

20.0%

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Went to See an Art Exhibit or Who Attended
a Performing Arts Event (Music, Dance, or Theater), By Venue: 2012 6
15.4%

Park or open-air facility
Theater, concert hall,
or auditorium

12.3%

Restaurant, bar, nightclub,
or coffee shop

11.7%

Elementary, middle,
or high school

9.9%

Church, synagogue, or
other place of worship

9.2%

Art museum
or gallery

9.0%

College or university
campus

7.5%
4.4%

Community center

0%

18 • national endowment for the arts

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

16%

18%

• One in five (20.8 percent, or 48.9 million
adults) attended an outdoor performing
arts festival—the same proportion as in
2008—but increases were seen for the
youngest and oldest adults.
• 4.1 percent of adults attended a literary
reading or storytelling event in 2012—the
first time such information was collected
in the history of the survey.7

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended an Outdoor Performing Arts
Festival, by Age: 2008 and 2012
outdoor performing arts festival
2008

2012

20.8%

20.8%

18-24

21.6%

25.2%*

25-34

22.8%

23.0%

35-44

24.1%

21.4%*

45-54

23.4%

21.6%

55-64

20.5%

20.7%

65-74

15.4%

17.9%

all adults
Age

75 and over

6.8%

9.1%*

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 19

Visual Arts and Other Attendance
1) As in prior years, more Americans went to
visual arts events and activities than attended
most types of arts performance. Between
2008 and 2012, however, rates declined for
the following activities:
• Visiting an art museum or gallery (21
percent of adults nationwide, or 49.3
million, did this activity at least once in
the 2012 survey year)

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended an Art Museum or Gallery and/or
Attended a Crafts Fair of Visual Arts Festival: 2002, 2008, and 2012
2008-2012
2002

2008

2012

change

rate of
change

Visited an art
museum or gallery

26.5%

22.7%

21.0%

-1.7pp**

-8%**

Attended a crafts fair
or visual arts festival

33.4%

24.5%

22.4%

-2.1pp**

-9%**

pp = percentage points

• Attending a crafts fair or visual arts
festival (22.4 percent, or 52.6 million
adults)
• Women, non-white and Hispanic groups,
and graduate or professional degreeholders visited art museums and galleries
at approximately the same rates as in
2008. Museum-going rates declined for
the youngest adults and for 35- to 44-yearolds, but grew for the oldest adults (75 and
over).

**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Visited an Art Museum or Gallery, by
Selected Demographic Variables: 2008 and 2012
visited an art museum or gallery
2008

2012

22.7%

21.0%**

Male

21.4%

18.7%**

Female

24.0%

23.1%

Hispanic

14.5%

14.3%

White

26.0%

24.0%**

African American

12.0%

11.9%

Other

23.4%

21.1%

18-24

22.9%

18.3%**

25-34

24.3%

22.1%

35-44

25.7%

21.2%**

45-54

23.3%

21.9%

55-64

24.3%

22.4%

65-74

19.9%

22.5%

75 and over

10.5%

15.5%**

Grade School

3.8%

3.6%

Some High School

9.2%

4.3%**

High School Graduate

9.6%

9.9%

Some College

23.8%

19.7%**

College Graduate

40.6%

37.2%**

Graduate School

52.2%

49.3%

all adults
Gender

Race and Ethnicity

Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

20 • national endowment for the arts

• The overall decline in craft fair attendance
was driven by lower rates among whites,
both men and women, middle-aged
Americans, and adults from various
educational backgrounds. Hispanics
boosted their attendance at crafts fairs.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Attended a Crafts Fair or Visual Arts Festival,
by Selected Demographic Variables: 2008 and 2012
attended a crafts fair or visual arts festival
2008

2012

24.5%

22.4%**

Male

20.5%

18.1%**

Female

28.3%

26.4%**

Hispanic

13.7%

16.8%*

White

29.3%

26.2%**

African American

12.2%

11.9%

Other

17.0%

16.2%

18-24

17.8%

18.2%

25-34

22.7%

21.6%

35-44

27.2%

22.0%**

45-54

29.1%

24.5%**

55-64

28.9%

25.8%**

65-74

24.8%

26.2%

75 and over

12.7%

15.1%

4.9%

5.9%

all adults
Gender

Race and Ethnicity

Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment
Grade School

-9%
decline in
craft fair
attendance
2008–2012

Some High School

11.2%

High School Graduate

17.3%

16.3%

Some College

27.5%

23.6%**

College Graduate

35.8%

32.9%

Graduate School

41.6%

36.9%**

8.1%**

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 21

2) The share of adults who toured a park,
monument, building, or neighborhood for
historic or design value remained on par
with the 2008 level. In 2012, 23.9 percent of
all adults (56.2 million) made these kind of
trips.
• The nation’s oldest Americans visited these
sites at higher rates in 2012.
• Less educated adults generally showed
declines in this activity. Adults 35 to 44
years old reduced their attendance.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Toured a Park, Monument, Building, or
Neighborhood for Historic or Design Value, by Age and Educational
Attainment: 2008 and 2012
toured a park, monument, building, or neighborhood
for historic or design value
2008

2012

24.9%

23.9%

18-24

21.9%

20.4%

25-34

25.7%

25.1%

35-44

26.8%

23.2%**

45-54

28.0%

26.2%

55-64

27.6%

26.3%

65-74

24.1%

25.5%

75 and over

11.2%

15.1%**

Grade School

3.8%

3.8%

Some High School

9.1%

5.9%**

all adults
Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

High School Graduate

14.6%

13.3%

Some College

28.4%

24.9%**

College Graduate

39.4%

38.3%

Graduate School

48.1%

48.6%

**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

22 • national endowment for the arts

3) Moviegoing increased significantly from
2008 to 2012.8

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Went Out to a Movie, by Selected
Demographic Variables: 2008 and 2012

• Higher attendance rates were observed for
nearly all demographic subgroups.
• 2.4 percent of adults attended a film
festival in 2012, the first year the question
was asked in the survey.9

went out to a movie
2008

2012

53.3%

59.3%**

Male

52.7%

58.1%**

Female

54.0%

60.4%**

Hispanic

48.1%

54.8%**

White

55.7%

61.5%**

African American

47.4%

53.3%**

Other

49.3%

57.5%**

18-24

74.2%

75.6%

25-34

64.5%

68.4%*

35-44

59.5%

68.2%**

45-54

52.6%

59.9%**

55-64

46.2%

50.6%**

65-74

31.7%

44.1%**

75 and over

18.9%

30.7%**

Grade School

15.9%

21.7%*

Some High School

37.9%

36.7%

High School Graduate

42.5%

48.6%**

Some College

60.8%

64.9%**

College Graduate

68.8%

75.2%**

Graduate School

71.6%

76.8%**

all adults
Gender

Race and Ethnicity

Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 23

II. Reading Books and Literature
This section covers voluntary reading, including literature (novels or short stories, poetry, and
plays) and books in general. Where possible and instructive, comparisons have been made with the
2008 survey findings.
Percent of U.S. Adults Who Read Books and/or Literature (2012)
Books not required
for work or school

55%

Novels or
short stories

Poetry

Plays

0%

57% read in one of these four categories

45%

7%

47% read in one of these three categories

3%
10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

In this chart, adults are counted multiple times if they read in more than one category.

changes in reading books and
literature: 2008–2012
The uptick in literary reading rates that
occurred between 2002 and 2008 has been
reversed. In 2012, fewer than half of all U.S.
adults (46.9 percent, or 110.2 million) read a
novel, short story, poem, or play. Meanwhile,
the share of adults who read any book
whatsoever has remained constant.
Since 2002, the share of poetry-readers has
contracted by 45 percent—resulting in the
steepest decline in participation in any
literary genre. Sixty-five to 74-year-olds now
are among those with the highest rates of
literary reading. Moreover, adults 65 and
older saw a significant increase in bookreading of any type.10
In keeping with their arts attendance
patterns relative to non-Hispanic whites,
the proportion of non-white and Hispanic
groups who read books or literature did not
decline in 2012.

24 • national endowment for the arts

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Read at Least One Work of Literature
(Novels or Short Stories, Poetry, or Plays): 1982–2012
60%

56.4%

54.2%
46.6%

50%

50.2%

46.9%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
1982

1992

2002

2008

2012

The change from 2008 to 2012 is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level.

A man browses books at the 2011 Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago. Photo by Glenn Kaupert, courtesy of the Chicago Tribune

Novels and Short Stories, Poetry, and Plays
1) Reading of fiction and poetry has declined
since 2008, while play-reading has remained
at the same, comparably lower rate.
• The rate of adults reading novels or short
stories is back down to the 2002 level.
From 2002 to 2012, the poetry-reading rate
nearly halved.11
• The declines in literary reading (novels
or short stories, poetry, or plays) occurred
among whites, women as well as men,
middle-aged adults, and adults from
various educational backgrounds.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Read At Least One Work of Literature
(Novels or Short Stories, Poetry, or Plays), By Type: 2002, 2008, and
2012
2008-2012
rate of
change

2002

2008

2012

change

Novels or Short
Stories

45.1%

47.0%

45.1%

-1.9pp**

-4%**

Poetry

12.1%

8.3%

6.7%

-1.6pp**

-19%**

Plays

3.6%

2.6%

2.9%

-0.3pp

-12%

pp = percentage points
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 25

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Read at Least One Work of Literature
(Novels or Short Stories, Poetry, or Plays), by Selected Demographic
Variables: 2008 and 2012
read at least one work of literature
2008
all adults

2012

50.2%

46.9%**

Male

41.9%

36.9%*

Female

58.0%

56.1%*

Hispanic

31.9%

31.0%

White

55.7%

52.2%*

African American

42.6%

40.1%

Other

43.9%

41.3%

18-24

51.7%

47.6%

25-34

50.1%

47.7%

35-44

50.8%

45.1%*

45-54

50.3%

44.6%*

55-64

53.1%

48.2%*

65-74

49.1%

52.0%

75 and over

42.3%

43.8%

Grade School

18.5%

16.9%

Some High School

34.3%

22.8%*

High School Graduate

39.1%

36.8%

Some College

56.2%

50.3%*

College Graduate

66.6%

63.0%*

Graduate School

71.2%

69.5%

Gender

Race and Ethnicity

Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
**change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

26 • national endowment for the arts

Books in General
1) More than half of all adults (54.5 percent,
or 128 million adults in the 2012 survey year)
read a book of any type, outside work or
school. The share was nearly identical to that
in 2008.
• Women and older adults (65 and over)
increased their book-reading rates. Those
gains were offset by declines among 35- to
44-year-olds and adults with only some
high school education.
• Of all adults, 50.3 percent read more than
one book in the 2012 survey year. Of this
group, the majority (58 percent) said they
had read both fiction and nonfiction,
while 23 percent said they had read only
fiction.12

Percent Distribution of U.S. Adults Who
Read More Than One Book, by Type: 2012

Fiction
23%

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Read at Least One Book (Any Type), by
Selected Demographic Variables: 2008 and 2012
read at least one book of any type
2008

2012

54.3%

54.5%

Male

46.3%

44.7%

Female

61.7%

63.6%**

Hispanic

32.8%

36.3%

White

60.8%

60.6%

African American

43.4%

46.2%

Other

47.7%

49.9%

18-24

50.7%

51.8%

25-34

54.1%

54.8%

35-44

56.2%

53.0%*

45-54

54.2%

53.2%

55-64

58.4%

56.5%

65-74

54.5%

61.1%**

75 and over

47.4%

52.4%**

Grade School

18.7%

21.5%

Some High School

33.4%

27.7%**

High School Graduate

41.5%

41.2%

Some College

60.0%

59.8%

College Graduate

74.1%

72.5%

Graduate School

80.8%

81.7%

all adults
Gender

Race and Ethnicity

Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment
Both
58%
Nonfiction
19%

*change is statistically significant at the 90 percent confidence level
** change is statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 27

III. Consuming Art through Electronic Media
This section covers art consumption through TV or radio, the Internet, various other electronic
media such as CDs or DVDs, and handheld or mobile devices. Because many questions on
this topic were new to the 2012 SPPA, comparisons with the 2008 survey findings have not
been attempted.
Percent of U.S. Adults Who Consumed Art through Electronic Media, By Type (2012)

54%

TV or radio

Handheld or
mobile device

71% consumed art through
any of these media

38%

32%

Internet

DVD, CD, tape, or
record player

27%
0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

In this chart, adults are counted multiple times if they used more than one media category.

consuming art through electronic
media: a 2012 snapshot
For most types of programming, Americans
still use traditional broadcast media rather
than the Internet to view or listen to artsrelated content. Relatively large numbers
from most demographic groups access music
and literature via handheld or mobile devices.
Traditional Media and the Internet
1) Music viewing and/or listening is the most
popular form of media arts participation
captured by the survey—whether the
medium was TV, radio, or the Internet.
• Fifty percent of adults used TV or radio
to watch or listen to music. Twenty-nine
percent of adults used the Internet to
watch, listen to, or download music.13

28 • national endowment for the arts

50%

60%

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Watched or Listened to Various Types of Art on TV, Radio, or Internet: 2012

45%
TV or Radio

Internet

Ballet,
Modern, or
Contemporary
Dance

Books,
Short Stories,
or Poetry
Read Aloud

40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Music Other
than Classical,
Jazz, or Latin

Classical
Music

Latin, Spanish,
or Salsa Music

Jazz

Dance Other
than Ballet,
Modern, or
Contemporary

Programs or
Information
about the
Visual Arts

Programs or
Information
about Books
or Writers

Theater

Opera

2) Only literature—books, short stories, or
poetry read aloud—garnered more audiences
by Internet (4.6 percent) than by TV or radio
(3.8 percent).
3) Twenty-seven percent of adults used a
DVD or CD player, a record-player, or a
tape-player to watch or listen to music or to
programs about theater, dance, visual arts,
or literature.
Handheld and Mobile Devices
1) One in three (34.2 percent, or 80.4 million
adults) used handheld or mobile devices
to download, watch, or listen to music
performances.14
• Music access via handheld or mobile
devices is one of the very few forms of
arts participation that yielded marginally
higher rates for men than for women.
• Well over half of all young adults (18–34
years of age) did this activity at least once
in 2012.

71%

of adults
consumed art
via electronic
media
2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 29

The Smithsonian’s “Seriously Amazing” website in use on a tablet computer. Photo by Brian Ireley, Smithsonian Institution

2) Among other art forms represented,
literature had the next largest audience
through handheld or mobile devices: 16
percent of adults used those technologies to
access novels, short stories, plays, or poetry.
3) For mobile and handheld device-users,
differences in arts consumption by
racial/ethnic group do not appear as great
as for many other forms of arts participation.
• Non-white and Hispanic adults who use
handheld/mobile technologies were as
likely as white adults to use these devices
to access music, visual art, or dance or
theater performances.15

30 • national endowment for the arts

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Used a Handheld or Mobile Device to Consume Art, by Selected Demographic Characteristics:
2012
Used a handheld
or mobile device
for any purpose

To read, listen to, or
download novels,
short stories, or plays

To download, watch,
or listen to music

To download, watch,
or listen to theater or
dance performances

To download or view
any visual arts such
as painting, sculpture,
graphic design, or
photography

53.1%

16.0%

34.2%

3.4%

7.9%

Male

54.1%

14.1%

35.0%

2.8%

7.7%

Female

52.2%

17.8%

33.3%

3.8%

8.0%

Hispanic

46.3%

11.3%

31.4%

2.3%

6.2%

White

55.8%

18.1%

35.6%

3.3%

8.5%

African American

45.9%

10.5%

29.4%

4.2%

5.9%

Other

54.6%

14.8%

33.9%

4.8%

8.1%

18-24

71.8%

19.4%

59.4%

6.6%

10.7%

25-34

71.7%

20.0%

54.7%

4.6%

11.0%

35-44

62.7%

18.9%

39.3%

2.8%

9.4%

45-54

51.9%

16.6%

29.1%

3.3%

7.7%

55-64

43.2%

15.2%

22.0%

2.5%

6.2%

65-74

30.7%

9.6%

11.8%

2.1%

4.5%

75 and over

13.6%

3.8%

2.3%

0.3%

0.9%

all adults
Gender

Race and Ethnicity

Age

Highest Level of Educational Attainment
Grade School

11.8%

1.9%

5.7%

0.2%

0.6%

Some High School

31.1%

6.4%

19.8%

2.1%

3.0%

High School Graduate

40.6%

8.0%

24.2%

2.3%

3.8%

Some College

59.6%

17.3%

39.4%

3.0%

7.7%

College Graduate

70.0%

24.1%

46.0%

5.4%

13.3%

Graduate School

74.5%

34.0%

49.5%

5.8%

17.3%

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 31

IV. Making and Sharing Art
This section covers arts creation, performance, and sharing, including through electronic media.
Because many questions on this topic were new to the 2012 SPPA, comparisons with the 2008
survey findings have not been attempted.

Students from DC’s Levine School of Music at THEARC playing at THEARC’s 5th Anniversary Gala reception. From left: Alexander Myree-Powell
and Thomas Smoot. Photo by Victor Holt

32 • national endowment for the arts

making and sharing art:
a 2012 snapshot
As in 2008, activities such as weaving,
playing a musical instrument, and
doing photography are among the most
popular types of art-making for adults.
Nevertheless, by including new questions
about how Americans created, performed,
and distributed art—especially through
socialization and the use of technology—the
2012 survey reveals a broader spectrum of
arts participants.
Sharing Art with Others
1) Social dancing is the most commonly
reported activity among all the forms of artmaking and art-sharing included on the 2012
survey.
• Nearly one in three adults (31.5 percent)
danced at weddings, clubs, or other social
settings.
• Among all racial/ethnic groups, Hispanic
Americans have the highest rates of social
dancing (36.3 percent) and account for
about 18 percent of all social dancers.
More than 40 percent of 18- to 34-yearolds did social dancing, and they also
represent nearly 40 percent of all social
dancers.
2) One in four adults (26.4 percent) e-mailed,
posted, or shared photography in 2012, and
about half that share did this for films or
videos.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Did Social Dancing, by Selected
Demographic Variables: 2012
all adults

31.5%

Gender
Male

29.8%

Female

33.1%

Race and Ethnicity
Hispanic

36.3%

White

31.1%

African American

31.0%

Other

26.2%

Age
18-24

41.5%

25-34

41.8%

35-44

32.1%

45-54

31.5%

55-64

27.1%

65-74

22.5%

75 and over

12.5%

Highest Level of Educational Attainment
Grade School

18.1%

Some High School

21.2%

High School Graduate

25.0%

Some College

34.1%

College Graduate

40.8%

Graduate School

41.2%

3) One in five adults (21.2 percent) e-mailed,
posted, or shared music, and more than 15
percent did the same for their own photos.

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 33

Creating, Performing, or Preserving Art
1) More than 13 percent did weaving,
crocheting, quilting, needlepoint, knitting,
or sewing in 2012.
• Approximately the same share did
photography for artistic purposes (12.4
percent) or did photo editing (13 percent).
Twelve percent of adults played a musical
instrument.
2) Roughly the same proportion of adults
sang as did leatherwork, metalwork, or
woodwork (around 8 percent). More than 6
percent did scrapbooking, and a comparable
number did creative writing or created
visual art.
3) Five percent of adults created or
performed music, and just over 4 percent
recorded, edited, or remixed music
performances.
4) Roughly the same share of adults made
films or videos as did editing or remixing in
this medium: around 2 or 3 percent.

32%

of adults did
social dancing

34 • national endowment for the arts

Art-Making and Art-Sharing Activities Ranked by Percent of U.S. Adults
Who Participated: 2012
Did social dancing

31.5%

E-mailed, posted, or shared photography

26.4%

E-mailed, posted, or shared music

21.2%

E-mailed, posted, or shared one’s own photography

15.3%

E-mailed, posted, or shared films or videos

13.4%

Did weaving, crocheting, quilting, needlepoint, knitting, or sewing

13.2%

Edited photographs

13.0%

Created photographs for artistic purposes

12.4%

Played a musical instrument alone or with others

12.0%

Sang, either alone or with others

8.7%

Created leatherwork, metalwork, or woodwork

8.2%

Did scrapbooking

6.5%

Did creative writing

5.9%

Created visual art

5.7%

E-mailed, posted, or shared visual arts

5.6%

Practiced or performed dance

5.1%

Created or performed music

5.0%

E-mailed, posted, or shared dance

4.9%

Created pottery, ceramics, or jewelry

4.5%

Recorded, edited, or remixed music performances

4.4%

E-mailed, posted, or shared creative writing

4.3%

Participated in a book club or reading group

3.6%

E-mailed, posted, or shared one’s own music

3.3%

E-mailed, posted, or shared one’s own visual arts

3.2%

Sang choral music, or in a glee club or choir

3.1%

E-mailed, posted, or shared one’s own creative writing

2.9%

Created films or videos

2.8%

Used a computer, a handheld or mobile device, or the Internet to
create visual arts

2.8%

E-mailed, posted, or shared one’s own films or videos

2.4%

Edited or remixed films or videos

2.2%

E-mailed, posted, or shared one’s own scrapbooking

2.2%

Practiced or performed classical music

2.2%

Did acting

1.4%

Used a computer, a handheld or mobile device, or the Internet to
create music

1.4%

Created or performed dance

1.3%

Practiced or performed Latin, Spanish, or salsa music

1.2%

Recorded, edited, or remixed dance performances

0.9%

Practiced or performed jazz

0.9%

Practiced or performed a musical or non-musical play

0.8%

E-mailed, posted, or shared one’s own dance

0.7%

Practiced or performed opera

0.3%

V. Participating in Arts Learning
This section covers lifelong learning in the arts, including classes or lessons in art subjects
taken in the 2012 survey year. Because many questions on this topic were new to the 2012 SPPA,
comparisons with the 2008 survey findings have not been attempted.

Antonio Douthit, a member of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, leads a class at the Center of Creative Arts (COCA) in St. Louis, where he
himself recieved training. Photo courtesy of COCA

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 35

arts learning: a 2012 snapshot
Depending on which definitions are used—
whether in terms of classes or lessons, in or
out of school, or whether conveyed through
another method entirely—50 to 56 percent
of U.S. adults have engaged in arts learning at
some point in their lives. No matter how this
metric is applied, though, large disparities
in participation are evident by gender,
race/ethnicity, and level of educational
attainment. (Some of those gaps narrow
when considering only adults who took
art classes or lessons in the last year.) Other
key differences emerge when examining
the primary mode of learning for each art
subject.
In- and Out-of-School Classes or Lessons
1) Half of all adults (49.6 percent) have taken
an art class or lesson, whether in our out of
school, at some point in their lives.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Took an Art Class or Lesson at Any Point
in Their Lives, Whether In or Out of School, by Selected Demographic
Variables: 2012
all adults

49.6%

Gender
Male

45.4%

Female

53.4%

Race and Ethnicity
Hispanic

30.5%

White

56.4%

African American

34.5%

Other

48.0%

Age
18-24

58.8%

25-34

50.9%

35-44

48.9%

45-54

46.4%

55-64

49.6%

65-74

47.3%

75 and over

42.5%

Highest Level of Educational Attainment
Grade School

36 • national endowment for the arts

8.0%

Some High School

21.3%

High School Graduate

35.6%

Some College

56.8%

College Graduate

69.4%

Graduate School

73.4%

• Forty-three percent of all adults have taken
art classes or lessons in their childhood.
Seven percent of adults did so in the 2012
survey year.
2) Whites, women, younger adults, and those
with higher levels of education are the most
likely to have taken arts classes or lessons,
whether in childhood or at any point in their
lives.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Took an Art Class or Lesson in Any Subject in
Childhood, by Selected Demographic Variables: 2012
all adults

42.7%

Gender
Male

38.3%

Female

46.8%

Race and Ethnicity
Hispanic

29.9%

White

49.0%

African American

31.0%

Other

39.0%

Age
18-24

55.4%

25-34

47.3%

35-44

43.0%

45-54

39.5%

55-64

38.7%

65-74

38.7%

75 and over

31.5%

Highest Level of Educational Attainment
Grade School

4.6%

Some High School

17.8%

High School Graduate

31.5%

Some College

49.9%

College Graduate

59.0%

Graduate School

60.7%

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 37

• Among adults who took an art class or
lesson in the previous year, however,
there are no significant differences in
participation by racial/ethnic group.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Took Any Arts Class or Lesson in the Last
Year, by Selected Demographic Variables: 2012
all adults

7.3%

Gender
Male

5.7%

Female

8.9%

Race and Ethnicity
Hispanic

6.1%

White

7.8%

African American

5.7%

Other

8.1%

Age
18-24

16.2%

25-34

7.7%

35-44

6.5%

45-54

5.3%

55-64

6.1%

65-74

5.3%

75 and over

3.3%

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

38 • national endowment for the arts

Grade School

0.8%

Some High School

2.2%

High School Graduate

3.6%

Some College

9.4%

College Graduate

10.7%

Graduate School

13.3%

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Ever Took an Art Class or Lesson, Whether In or Out of School, by Subject: 2012
In School

Out of School

Both In and Out of School

Voice Training or Playing an Instrument
Visual Arts (e.g., drawing, painting, pottery,
weaving, or graphic or fashion design)
Art Appreciation or Art History
Dance
Creative Writing
Music Appreciation

Photography or Filmmaking
Acting or Theater

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

3) Among adults who took dance classes
or lessons at any point in their lives, most
received this instruction outside school.
• For all other art subjects, the majority of
classes or lessons were taken in school.
Yet in the case of music classes or lessons
(voice training or learning to play a
musical instrument), a large proportion
were likely to have occurred both in and
out of school.

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 39

Other Types of Arts Learning
1) Asking about arts learning beyond classes
or lessons shows a higher participation rate
than asking only about receiving formal
instruction.

Percent of U.S. Adults Who Ever Engaged in Learning of Any Arts Subject
Through Any Learning Method, by Selected Demographic Variables:
2012
all adults

56.0%

• Fifty-six percent took art classes or lessons
or learned through some other method
(from friends, through a family tradition,
or by teaching oneself). Discrepancies still
persist by racial/ethnic group, gender, and
education level.

Gender

Hispanic

40.0%

2) Photography or filmmaking is the only
art subject for which the majority of learning
occurred without classes or lessons.

White

61.8%

African American

43.9%

Other

53.7%

• Proportionately high levels of learning
without classes or lessons also occurred in
music appreciation and dance.
3) When learning beyond classes or lessons
is taken into account, dance education—
rather than visual arts learning—claims the
next highest participation rate after music
education.

Male

52.6%

Female

59.2%

Race and Ethnicity

Age
18-24

64.1%

25-34

58.0%

35-44

55.9%

45-54

50.9%

55-64

56.2%

65-74

55.8%

75 and over

50.7%

Highest Level of Educational Attainment

56%

of adults
participated in
arts learning at
some point in
their lives
40 • national endowment for the arts

Grade School

21.7%

Some High School

32.8%

High School Graduate

43.2%

Some College

62.5%

College Graduate

73.5%

Graduate School

76.1%

Percentage of U.S. Adults Who Ever Engaged in Arts Learning, by Subject and Type of Learning: 2012
Engaged with Learning through Any Means

Classes or Lessons

Other Than Classes or Lessons

Voice Training or Playing an Instrument

Dance

Visual Arts (e.g., drawing, painting, pottery,
weaving, or graphic or fashion design)

Art Appreciation or Art History

Music Appreciation

Creative Writing

Photography or Filmmaking

Acting or Theater

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 41

Conclusions

Findings from an initial analysis of the 2012 SPPA results
show that large segments of the U.S. adult population experienced at
least one of various kinds of arts activity within the past year. Nearly half
of the nation’s adults attended at least one type of visual or performing
arts activity on the SPPA core questionnaire; half of the nation’s adults
created, performed, or shared art of various types16; and more than twothirds accessed art via electronic media. More than half of the U.S. adult
population attended at least one movie, and more than half read a work
of literature or a book not required for work or school.
As impressive as these top-line statistics are, they mask subtle shifts
in demographic and behavioral patterns that occurred since 2008, the
previous survey year. Aggregate rates of arts participation also conceal
such factors as how many and what variety of Americans participate
across different modes (for example, what proportion of adults access
art online, but also attend visual arts events), how often they attend arts
events in the course of a year (or how many books they read); and what
kinds of non-arts activities they conduct.
Further, the SPPA and its host survey instrument, the Current Population
Survey, include a wealth of demographic and behavioral information
that can be mined for detailed characteristics of arts participants and
non-participants. Also, the SPPA 2012 instrument asked other artsrelated questions not covered in this report; answers to those and some
of the questions referenced above, as well as geographic analysis where
permitted, will appear in an NEA research report scheduled for 2014
publication.
For the present report, below is a recapitulation of key findings from
each of the five preceding sections.
Attending Arts Events and Activities
• For many types of performing arts activities, attendance rates since
2008 appear unchanged. Yet declines in attending theater (musical
and non-musical plays alike), crafts fairs or visual arts festivals, and
art museums or galleries have caused the overall rate of visual and
performing arts attendance to drop significantly.
• Non-white and Hispanic Americans saw no declines in their arts
attendance rates from 2008 to 2012; on the contrary, they even saw
increases in some categories.
• Moviegoing increased substantially for most demographic subgroups.

42 • national endowment for the arts

Reading Books and Literature
• Literary reading rates dropped back to 2002 levels. Poetry reading in
particular has shown a pattern of long-term decline.
• As with their attendance trends, non-whites and Hispanics saw no
declines from their 2008 literary reading rates.
• Older Americans reported reading books of any type at a higher rate
than in 2008.
Art-Making and Art-Sharing
• Social dancing is the most popular form of art-making or art-sharing.
Young adults and Hispanic Americans are among the most active in this
category.
• The next most popular activities in art-making or art-sharing are
e-mailing, posting, or sharing photos, music, and films or video.
• Activities such as weaving, playing a musical instrument, and taking
photos “for artistic purposes” also rank relatively high.
Consuming Art through Electronic Media
• TV and radio still attract sizeable audiences for art performances
or programming. Although it is unclear how many of those TV or
radio offerings were accessed via the Internet, their audiences still
outnumber the total share of U.S. adults who said they watched or
listened to art performances or programming via the Internet.
• Relatively large numbers from all groups use handheld or mobile
devices to access music and literature. Given the comparatively lower
rates for accessing art directly through the Internet, this finding
suggests that many Americans return to enjoy the texts or playlists they
once obtained online. (They may also have used those devices to engage
with arts content originally from CD or DVD.)
Participating in Arts Learning
• As of 2012, roughly half of all adults had experienced some arts
learning at some point in their lives. But disparities persist by gender,
race/ethnicity, and level of general educational attainment.
• A high proportion of adults who learned filmmaking, dance, and music
appreciation did not take a class or lesson.

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 43

Each of these findings, and several others in this report, invite one or
more research questions. Regarding arts attendance and reading, for
example, one would want to know whether the long-term declines for
participation in certain art forms correlate with trends in rates of artistic
(including literary) production. In sum, what might be reasons for those
declines in attendance and literary reading? Also, what factors accounted
for the stability of attendance and reading rates among some racial/ethnic
subgroups, and how might this finding shape arts participation patterns
in the future? What role did e-readers and online reading play in the
book-reading rate increases among older Americans? What demographic
or behavioral differences do we see among people who attend large
numbers of events (or read many books), compared with those who
participate less intensively?
Because reliable trend data are unavailable for many kinds of artmaking and art-sharing featured in this survey, future research questions
based on the 2012 SPPA may want to explore demographic and/or
geographic differences in arts creation, performance, and sharing. Many
of these questions also apply to arts learning and to arts consumption
via electronic media. Equally important are definitional issues that
deserve scrutiny for future iterations of the survey: how can one more
effectively capture categories of personal expression of art—across
multiple platforms of technology—and how do these forms of expression
(whether through arts creation, performance, and sharing, or through
learning in the arts) relate to trends of live or media consumption of arts
activities? For that matter, how can the survey better account for “live”
and media-enabled arts experiences that occur at the same time and in
the same space?
Such questions are by no means an exhaustive list, or even the most
salient for arts researchers and practitioners, arts funders, and cultural
policy-makers. Instead, the questions hint at the variety of unknown
variables behind the statistics in this report. Not least of these variables
is how the survey respondent would have described the value of the arts
experiences he or she had, or how those perceptions (and the experiences
themselves) align with the development of individual and social outcomes.
For investigations of this scale, the SPPA alone cannot supply the answers.

44 • national endowment for the arts

Notes

Survey respondents were asked to exclude elementary and high school performances
from their responses to questions about attending classical music, jazz, and Latin, Spanish,
or salsa music performances, as well as from their responses to questions about musical and
non-musical theater, ballet, other dance, and opera.

1

2 5.1 percent of naturalized citizens or non-citizens attended jazz performances in
2012, compared with 3.6 percent in 2008. This difference is statistically significant at the
90 percent confidence level. In 2012, 15.4 percent of U.S. adults (or 36.2 million) were
naturalized citizens or non-citizens.
3 See also the NEA research brochure, All America’s a Stage: Growth and Challenges in
Nonprofit Theater (December 2008).
4 Survey respondents were asked to exclude elementary and high school performances
from their responses to the question about attending a live music performance. This
question was asked as part of the experimental Core 2 module of the survey.
5 In another question new to the SPPA, adults were asked about the venues where they
had attended music, dance, or theater performances or gone to see art exhibits within the
preceding 12 months. They were told to include any elementary or high school performances
they attended.
6 These estimates may change slightly because of more sophisticated weighting techniques that will be applied for production of this report’s sequel, scheduled for release in
early 2014.
7

Table not shown in this report.

8 Theatrical market statistics from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA)
show that 225 million people (including children) in the United States and Canada went
to the movies at least once in 2012, and just over 221 million went at least once in 2011.
According to MPAA, this proportion—roughly two-thirds of the U.S./Canada population
above two years of age—is comparable to proportions in previous years. In terms of revenue,
however, U.S./Canada box-office sales were $10.2 billion and $10.8 billion in 2011 and 2012
respectively, while sales were $9.6 billion in both 2007 and 2008. The 2012 SPPA covered
the period of July 2011 through July 2012, while the 2008 SPPA covered May 2007 through
May 2008. Top-grossing films during the SPPA 2012 reporting period included: Harry Potter
and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2; Marvel’s The Avengers; The Hunger Games; and Twilight Saga:
Breaking Dawn, Part 1.
9

Table not shown in this report.

10 Survey respondents were asked to exclude from their responses any books read for work
or school.
11 See the NEA’s research brochure Reading on the Rise: A New Chapter in American Literacy
(January 2009), which reports that despite overall literary rates climbing from 2002 to
2008, the poetry-reading rate dropped by 31 percent over that period.
12 The experimental Core 2 module of the 2012 SPPA asked respondents whether they
had read more than one book, and if so, which types of books. Results from these questions
cannot be compared directly with the responses from Core 1 of the survey, which was used
to generate results for this report’s earlier findings about reading.
13 Table not shown in this report.
14 Respondents were given examples of handheld or mobile devices, including a “smart
phone, MP3 player, e-book reader, or a laptop, notebook, or tablet computer.”

2012 survey of public participation in the arts • 45

15 Among adults who used a handheld or mobile device in the past year, racial/ethnic group
differences in the rates of visual/performing arts consumption via these media were not
statistically significant.
16 As explained on page 7, activities related to art-making and art-sharing fell into two
separate modules of the 2012 SPPA survey instrument, and could not be merged for analysis
in time for this report. Within each of those two modules, however, the proportion of
respondents who reported doing at least one art-making or art-sharing activity is roughly 50
percent.

46 • national endowment for the arts

NAT IO NAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20506-0001

Not for sale. Available for free at arts.gov

NAT IO NAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20506-0001

Not for sale. Available for free at arts.gov