Attendance declining, not just at church
Fewer people are attending cultural events says new analysis by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Miller-McClune reports:
Omnivores — defined by sociologists as people who regularly participate in a broad range of cultural activities — represent a small minority of the population, but a large portion of the arts audience. In a new analysis recently released by the National Endowment for the Arts, author Mark J. Stern concludes that this engaged, energetic group is both shrinking in size and becoming less active.I'd hazard the guess that the omnivores spurred the survival of the arts not only in their attendance, but also in their working behind the scenes to support the arts.Stern, a professor of social policy and practice at the University of Pennsylvania, describes this trend as “a double blow” to the nation’s arts organizations. In Age and Arts Participation: A Case Against Demographic Destiny, he argues the largely unexplained diminution of this group is a key reason attendance at arts events continues to dwindle.
Stern notes that, in recent decades, there has been “a precipitous decline in attendance” at art museums, plays, operas, dance performances, and concerts of both jazz and classical music. According to NEA statistics, classical music attendance has declined at a 29 percent rate since 1982, with the steepest drop occurring form 2002 to 2008....
Are you experiencing anything like this in terms of attendance in your church, that is, the "engaged, energetic group is both shrinking in size and becoming less active"? I sense such a pattern in churches, but perhaps it has always felt like that.
People are still active in the community and politics but not so much in church sponsored "outreach" -- is this a good thing or a bad thing or just different?
Posted by Ann Fontaine![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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March 17, 2011 11:30 AM