Last March, we lost a dear colleague and innovator in the field of cultural economics. Stephen Sheppard, a professor of economics at Williams College, died at the age of 69. This is an overdue attempt to pay some sort of tribute to Dr. Sheppard and his abiding influence. Personally, I got to know him 12 years ago, when the NEA partnered with the Brookings Institution to … [Read more...] about Remembering the Works of Stephen Sheppard, Cultural Economist
Multidisciplinary Artists and Game Designers Merit Inclusion in U.S. Labor Data Codes, Study Finds
The very first research report from the National Endowment for the Arts, nearly half a century ago, discussed employment and unemployment rates of artists. From that time onward, when analyzing trends for artists and other cultural workers, the NEA’s Office of Research & Analysis has relied on jobs data collected by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor … [Read more...] about Multidisciplinary Artists and Game Designers Merit Inclusion in U.S. Labor Data Codes, Study Finds
Strengthening Adoption of Arts/Health Practices through Research: A Five-Point Plan
At an event last weekend, I spoke at the invitation of that rarest of entities—a coalition of brain scientists, foundations, and venture capitalists. This group, BrainMind, held a forum inspired by Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross’s bestselling book, Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us. Sessions at the forum covered such topics as the neurophysiology of one’s brain “on … [Read more...] about Strengthening Adoption of Arts/Health Practices through Research: A Five-Point Plan
Quick Study: Jobs and Training Needs for Arts-Degree Holders
In this episode, we review findings from Jennifer Novak-Leonard's study of postsecondary degree-holders in the arts, with a focus on career outcomes, including satisfaction with jobs and training. A transcript is available on the NEA website. … [Read more...] about Quick Study: Jobs and Training Needs for Arts-Degree Holders
Momentum Gains with Small-Scale Studies about the Arts and Mental Health
One spring day in 1840, on the bank of Goose Pond in Massachusetts—not far from Walden Pond, where Henry David Thoreau would make his stand—Ralph Waldo Emerson and the poet Jones Very were admiring the interplay of wind and water. “I declare this world is so beautiful that I can hardly believe it exists,” Emerson was moved to say. His more empirically-minded companion noted: … [Read more...] about Momentum Gains with Small-Scale Studies about the Arts and Mental Health