Culture Matters? the Role of Art and Culture in the Development of Social Capital
Culture Matters? The role of art and culture in the development of social capital.
Jenny Flinn, Lecturer in Events Management
Dr Gayle McPherson, Acting Head of Division
Division of Cultural Business, GlasgowCaledonianUniversity
Introduction
The inclusive nature of artistic and cultural engagement (Combat Poverty Agency, 1996) means that arts and cultural activities can provide a particularly useful instrument for involving people in decisions affecting their local community. This paper will explore the possibility that when a community comes together to share in cultural life it enhances its relationships, partnerships and networks (Gould, 2001), developing social capital and enabling the community to actively engage in the community planning process. Research conducted in one of Scotland’s most economically and socially deprived communities, North Glasgow, will be utilised to demonstrate and critique the role of artistic and cultural engagement in developing social capital; enabling and encouraging people to become actively involved in their community.
Capital: the theoretical concept
The concept of social capital has risen to prominence across the western world in recent years, transferring from sociological theory into everyday language. Capital is described by Bourdieu (1983:p. 183) as:
Accumulated labour (in its materialised form or its incorporated, embodied form) which, when appropriated on a private, i.e. exclusive, basis by agents or groups of agents enables them to appropriate social energy in the form or reified or living labour.
Fundamentally, capital can be described as retaining a surplus value, representing an investment with expected returns (Lin, 1999). It therefore follows that it is almost impossible to explain the structure or functioning of society without reference to capital in one of its many forms. The concept of capital has clearly existed for some time but it was Marx (1849) who first ‘formalised’ the concept with his theory of economic capital. Other forms of capital include human capital, the investment in education with the expected outcome of earnings (Lin, 1999) and cultural capital, the investment in symbols and meanings by the dominant culture as a way of maintaining social dominance (Bourdieu, 1983) amongst others.
While the concept of social capital has only recently come to be commonly used in everyday terms it does not really encompass any idea which is new to sociologists (Portes, 1998). It was Bourdieu (1985) who carried out the first systematic contemporary analysis of social capital, which he defined as:
The aggregate of the actual or potential resources which are linked to the possession of a durable network or more or less institutionalised relationships of mutual acquaintance or recognition. (Bourdieu, 1985:p. 248).
There are currently a plethora of definitions of social capital, but as Portes (1998) points out, there is a growing consensus that social capital refers to the ability of individuals to secure benefits by virtue of membership in social networks and other structures. It is this concept of social networks that is central to the notion of social capital. It is strongly suggested that social capital does not just benefit those people directly involved but society in general, with Putnam (1993: p. 167) believing that “features of social organisation, such as trust, norms and networks can improve the efficiency of society by facilitating co-ordinated actions”. This is reinforced by Woolcock and Narayan (2000: p. 3) who suggest that:
What is true for individuals also holds for groups. Those communities endowed with a diverse stock of social networks and civic associations will be in a stronger position to confront poverty and vulnerability, resolve disputes and/or take advantage of new opportunities.
It is therefore unsurprising that social capital is a concept which is not just of interest to sociologists and social scientists but has risen on the political spectrum in recent years with an increasing number of political policies and agendas seeking to develop levels of social capital. A number of reasons have been cited as to why social capital is currently so high on the political agenda across the western world with the most common and recurring theme appearing to be the role that social capital can play in engaging people with their community and encouraging the development of a civil society. As Dekker and Van der Broek (1998: p. 16) suggest:
An important reason for the popularity of the civil society theme in the west is the widespread concern about the presumed decline in social and political engagement in western society.
Indeed, it can be suggested that a decline in participation in community life has been witnessed in recent years as documented by Robert Putnam (2000) in his seminal work on the decline of community life in the USA. Putnam (2000: p. 127) comments that, “Americans have worked on fewer and fewer community projects over the last several decades, corresponding to trends in declining community involvement”. This downturn in community involvement and engagement has been witnessed across the western world as people live increasingly individualistic lives and is particularly apparent in disadvantaged communities where sociability has often been diminished by poverty, crime and mis-trust (Matarasso, 1997) which often leads to the creation of a ‘culture of fear’.
This downward trend in community participation is of particular concern in the UK (and elsewhere) as the state attempts to retreat from its position as the main welfare provider and empower the population to take ownership and responsibility for their communities and the issues which face them. Such an approach can be seen in many current government policies and agendas which seek to reverse this decline in community participation by encouraging the development of relationships, networks and partnerships within and between communities, essentially strengthening bonds and building bridges. For example, the Community Cohesion Unit works to develop communities with four key characteristics: a common vision and sense of belonging; the valuing of diversity; similar life opportunities for all; strong and positive relationships between people from different backgrounds and circumstances (Neighbourhood Renewal Unit, 2007). It can therefore be seen that the development of social capital is inextricably linked to the process of community development, a concept that “draws attention to the significance of cultural and social capital for both individual engagement with living and for positive community change” (Burden, 2001: p. 28). The development of social capital is central to community development plans with Mills and Brown (2004: p. 76) suggesting that:
Many government initiatives aim to achieve and maintain change by enhancing a community’s strengths and it capacity to respond to, influence and resolve its social, economic and environmental issues. They may do this by using programmes designed to encourage the development of social capital.
This is reflected at a UK policy level with neighbourhood renewal being highlighted as a key priority by the current Labour Government. This can be seen in the publication of the Sustainable Communities Plan (Office for the Deputy Prime Minister, 2003) which outlines plans to create sustainable communities where people: can afford a decent home; have a community in which they want to live and work; have the chance to develop their skills and interests; have access to jobs and excellent services; and have the chance to become engaged in their community. The development of social capital is clearly a requisite to the achievement of these outcomes with art and culture having a central role to play in the development of social capital and thus the attainment of these outcomes. Where art and culture was once seen as “the Cinderella of local services, often perceived as an optional extra; a luxury only considered when other problems have been addressed” (Rowe, 2004: p. 2) is it now beginning to be acknowledged for the central role that it can play in neighbourhood development and regeneration processes. This is highlighted by the inclusion of ‘culture and sport for hard to reach groups’ as a theme in round seven of the Beacon Scheme, a scheme set up to disseminate best practice in service delivery across local government where themes are selected for each round, by government ministers, which are seen to be important to the day to day lives of the public and reflect key government priorities (Improvement and Development Agency, 2007). This also resonates with the arguments of Coalter (2001) who refers to a new emphasis being placed on development of social capital in relation to regeneration policies through the arts. Indeed, many such policies are now presented under this agenda and the perceived added benefits of social cohesion, establishment of networks and groups are well documented as successful outcomes of such initiatives (Arts Council England, 2004).
Social capital in Scottish politics
The Scottish Executive has been particularly keen to promote the development of social capital and involvement of local people in issues and decisions affecting their area as highlighted by the introduction of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 2003. This Act has sought to modernise local government and provide a framework for the delivery of better, more responsive public services. One of the outcomes of this Act has been the introduction of Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs) which aim to ensure that the public and communities are genuinely engaged in the decisions made on public services that affect them, allied to a commitment from organisations to work together, not apart, in providing better public services (Scottish Executive, 2003). Community engagement is central to the community planning process yet it is evident that many people do not possess the social capital, cultural capital, skills or, at times desire, to become involved in traditional methods of government consultation. This is particularly true in disadvantaged areas, which often stand to gain the most from community development and regeneration efforts. As such, an increased effort has been made through recent government policies and agendas (both in Scotland and the UK) to develop such skills and competences among the population.
Culture Matters: an action research initiative
Community Planning Partnerships seek to devolve power by bringing together the public sector, partners and the community to agree priorities on the planning and provision of services in their area (Glasgow Community Planning Partnership, 2006). Community engagement is central to this process and as such the introduction of CPPs provided a number of challenges and opportunities with regards to the strategic role of art and culture in supporting community development, regeneration and planning. The high levels of social and economic deprivation apparent in North Glasgowand recent developments concerning arts and cultural provision in the area made it an ideal test bed for exploring the possible role of art and culture within a community development and regeneration context.
The research, commissioned by North Glasgow Arts Regeneration Network (NGARN), formed part of ‘Culture Matters’, an action research initiative for North Glasgow which sought to explore the current and potential role of culture and the arts to community development, regeneration and community planning. The research itself consisted of two main stages: desk research comprising a review of literature and demographic profile of the community; and primary research consisting of an audit of arts and cultural activity in the area, benchmarking of four best practice case studies, eleven interviews with key stakeholders, and engagement workshops which involved seven groups from the local community participating in cultural activities in order to explore their perceptions of art and culture both in their lives and their local area. The findings of this research will now be examined in order to provide an insight into how art and culture may be utilised to develop social capital and engage citizens in local issues and democratic processes.
Defining culture
Donald Dewar, Scotland’s first First Minister proposed that “it is through engagement with culture in the widest sense that people are enabled and communities strengthened” (Scottish Executive, 2000:p. 1). It must be noted that when culture is referred to in a community arts context (as itwas during the discourse of this research) it is referred to in its ‘widest sense’ and does not relate only to the high arts as has been traditionally perceived. In the case of this research the concept of cultural democracy is explored, whereby cultural diversity is actively encouraged and promoted, with it being acknowledged that individualsinterpret culture in differing ways with no definition of culture being seen to be superior.
Culture and the arts have long been recognised as effective tools for education and conscious raising in the Southern Hemisphere (Combat Poverty Agency, 1996). However, in the UK (and other countries such as the USA) it is the economic benefits of cultural participation that have tended to inform public policy and underpin political thinking regarding the arts (Matarasso, 1997). This is especially true in the USA since very little public money is ever spent on the arts (Adams, 1998).In recent years the social benefits of cultural engagement have come to be increasingly recognised with participation in cultural activity being found to have a two-fold effect, on both individuals and the wider community (Coater, 2001). Lowe (2000: p. 381) even goes as far as to suggest that “community art emerges as a distinct sociological experience capable of transforming social realms”. It appears that a space is now opening up in the public imagination where people can visualise using the arts as a tool to achieve specific goals (Burnham & Durland, 2007). This is beginning to be reflected in government policy with Coalter (2001: p. v) pointing out that:
The potential contribution of arts provision to the broader social policy agenda has been emphasised by recent shifts in social and urban policy – from a concern with financial capital and infrastructural investment to a concentration on people and the development of social capital.
In the Scottish context this can be seen in the recent development of a Draft Culture (Scotland) Bill which seeks to provide all members of the population with access to cultural activities and the steady increases in funding which culture and the arts have received in recent years. At a more local level, Glasgow has long been recognised for its successful use of art and culture as a tool for regeneration (Garcia, 2005) with culture continuing to resonate throughout the strategies of Glasgow City Council(see, for example, Glasgow City Council, 2002; 2003). Indeed, the development of a specific cultural strategy seeks to develop culture within the city not only as a tourist attraction but as a tool in the sustainable development of communities, as is reflected in the fact that culture is seen to be a key priority for CPPs in Glasgow, under the heading ‘Vibrant Glasgow’.
The development of social economy
It is evident that the social benefits of cultural engagement and participation have come to the fore in recent years with culture offering benefits to those individuals directly involved and the wider community. At a basic level participation in art and cultural activity can help to increase communication and social skills, widening social networks; something which is central to the development of social capital. This can be of particular importance in disadvantaged areas where poor living environments can often prohibit the development of community relations (Stokowski, 1994), for example high unemployment and the nature of housing (e.g. high rise flats)may prevent people from forming relations or contributing fully to their community. Additionally, in North Glasgow it was found that art and culture provided a particularly successful tool for integrating migrant groups with the indigenous population (as will be discussed in more detail later).
For a number of participants in the research it was found that having some form of cultural activity to engage in simply provided them with a reason to leave the house and meet with other people. As one regenerationmanager from North Glasgow CPP suggested “it can help people to socially interact with other people which will improve their social skills”. Such participation and the development of social skills may seem to be fairly simplistic but the knock on effects were found to be numerous andwide ranging in their reach. For example, a group of recovering drug addicts acknowledged that participating in cultural activities and meeting with other people provided them with a network of support and a structure to their day which appeared to support their recovery. In addition to this, one member of the group had also discovered a talent for creative writing which was seen to be a great boost to their confidence and provided the group as a whole with a source of pride. As well as encouraging communication in an unstructured way many of the organisations involved in the study utilised artistic activities to develop specific communication skills, for example Bolt FM, a community radio station, has the specific aim to improve communication skills amongst its participants by teaching them broadcast skills and allowing them the chance to write, produce and broadcast their own radio programmes. An increase in communication skills is clearly beneficial to those individuals involved. This resonates with Matarasso (1997) finding that 92% of those people engaging in cultural activity found that participation helped them to make new friends and widen their social networks. In addition to this, it is clear that some level of communication skill is required to participate in community consultation and governance and thus, it could be suggested that cultural participation can be a useful tool in helping to provide those who are vocally under-represented with a forum for ensuring that their views are expressed and represented.