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Cultural policy analysis in the Nordic countries
Research environments
Journals
Publications from Kulturanalys Norden

What is Kulturanalys Norden?

Kulturanalys Norden is a Nordic knowledge centre for cultural policy. The centre was established on the initiative of the Nordic Council of Ministers and has been hosted by the Swedish Agency for Cultural Policy Analysis since 2016. As a Nordic knowledge centre, Kulturanalys Norden analyses cultural policy tendencies and effects in the Nordic countries; i.e., Denmark, Finland, Island, Norway and Sweden, plus the autonomous regions the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland. We analyse cultural issues and statistics from various perspectives.

Kulturanalys Norden is a hub for the knowledge and statistics gathered by Nordic government agencies, intergovernmental cooperation bodies and institutions and researchers involved in the field of cultural policy.

What we do

We conduct analyses and inquiries both on our own initiative and on assignment from the Nordic Council of Ministers and the Committee of Senior Officials for Culture.

Our work can be described in two different ways: either in terms of our three overall objectives, or in terms of the specific issues we focus on during each three-year period. The areas of our research are identified in close dialogue with the Nordic Council of Ministers.

Kulturanalys Norden’s three overall objectives

We conduct cross-border activities within the Nordic region to:

  1. investigate and analyse cultural policy issues;
  2. disseminate knowledge and research concerning cultural policy; and
  3. create the conditions for the long-term, systematic coordination of Nordic culture statistics.

Focus areas during the period 2022–2024

1. To investigate and analyse cultural policy issues

During the period, we will investigate issues related to:

  • threats, hate-speech and harassment in the culture sector;
  • identifying border barriers that potentially reduce cross-border culture activities in the Nordic region;
  • are the integration of sustainable development goals (UN Agenda 2030) into nordic cultural policiesconsequences of the Post Covid-19 pandemic and the potential recovery of the culture sector in the nordic region
  • is the accessibility of culture in different types of localities (urban/rural) in the Nordic countries; and
  • whether national and Nordic culture grants complement one another.

2. To disseminate knowledge and research concerning cultural policy.

We work actively to disseminate knowledge by writing research overviews on various themes.

During the period, we will be working on the following themes:

  • Participation in cultural life.
  • The role of culture in societal development.
  • The digitisation of cultural life.

3. To create the conditions for the long-term, systematic coordination of Nordic culture statistics.

During the period 2022–2024, we will review how statistics are collected in the various Nordic countries and work to ensure that in future statistics are equivalent and comparable. We call this process statistical harmonisation.

During the period, we will focus on statistics in the following categories:

  • Employment
  • Public spending
  • Literature
  • Performing arts

Among other things, we will study which statistics are counted in these categories, how they are defined and how frequently and at what times statistics are collected.

Read the results in our reports and analyses

We report the results of our inquiries in reports published online. These are published several times a year and you will find them at the foot of this page. Our end-product is intended to benefit a range of stakeholders in Nordic cultural policy cooperation, national agencies, those who produce and consume culture in the Nordic countries and Nordic cultural policy research.

Do you have any questions about Kulturanalys Norden?

Please don’t hesitate to contact us at norden@kulturanalys.se.

Cultural policy analysis in the Nordic countries

We keep up-to-date with current cultural policy research through our contacts in Nordic research environments, by participating in research conferences and by collaborating with researchers.

Research environments

Below we have compiled a list of some of the research environments in which studies of relevance to Nordic cultural policy are conducted.

The Section for Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark

The Section for Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums conducts research and education related to cultural mediation, cultural policy, user studies and evaluations, literacy, participation and citizenship, social media, digital cultural heritage and digitisation. The Section has contacts with both practitioners and relevant research environments.

The Centre for Cultural Policy Research at the University of Borås, Sweden

The Centre for Cultural Policy Research studies adjacent areas such as libraries, theatre and film as well as cultural policy in its broader meaning. This includes municipal, regional and national measures in the field of culture, initiatives by the culture industry and media, study associations and interest groups.

The Finnish Foundation for Cultural Policy Research (Cupore). Helsinki, Finland

Cupore is a research centre funded by the foundation of the same name. The centre monitors developments in Finnish and international cultural policy and promotes research in the field. Although the centre’s publications are usually in Finnish, many have English summaries and Cupore also publishes fact sheets in English.

The Department of Arts and Cultural Studies at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark

The Department of Arts and Cultural Studies conducts research and education in the subject areas art history, comparative literature, modern culture, musicology, theatre and performance studies, and visual culture. The department also studies the interaction between art and seminal cultural and societal trends.

The Politics Of Sports And Culture at the University of South-Eastern Norway

This research group primarily studies culture, sports and outdoor life in areas where these have more or less direct political implications. The group also conducts research into issues related to civil society and interest groups.

Telemarksforsking, Norway

Telemarksforsking is an independent, state-funded research institute that conducts research projects, evaluations and studies in the fields of cultural life and cultural policy.

Journals

Below we have compiled a list of some of the Nordic and international journals that publish articles on issues related to cultural policy. All of the listed journals are peer-reviewed, meaning that all articles are reviewed by other researchers before publication. Some of the journals require a subscription or log in via a higher education institution in order to access articles.

Cultural Trends

Culture Unbound: Journal of Current Cultural Research

Culture Unbound is an international open-access e-journal that publishes interdisciplinary cultural research. It has been published by ACCIS at Linköping University since 2009. The journal presents current, interdisciplinary cultural research in a broad sense.

European Journal of Cultural Management and Policy

An annual open-access publication containing articles on cultural research. The aim of the journal is to stimulate debate on cultural management and cultural policy among scholars, educators, policymakers and cultural managers. The journal is based on a multidisciplinary perspective and aims at connecting theory and practice in the cultural sector.

International Journal of Arts Management

First published in 1998, this journal is aimed at culture administrators, consultants, educators, researchers and civil servants. It is published by École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC) in Montreal in collaboration with the International Association of Arts and Cultural Management (AIMAC). The latter arranges an international conference every other year to present research in the field.

International Journal of Cultural Policy

Published by Taylor & Francis, this journal was founded in 1994 by Oliver Bennett of the Centre for Cultural Policy Studies at the University of Warwick. The journal has close ties to the International Conference on Cultural Policy Research (ICCPR), which is held every other year. A number of themed issues of the journal have been published, including Cultural Policy in Asia, Cultural Policy and Democracy, Cultural Policy and Popular Culture, and Religion and Cultural Policy. Among the articles in other issues are several studies of the effects of cultural policy and its application, discourse and rhetoric in cultural policy governance documents and the importance of cultural policy in shaping cultural identity, as well as various aspects of cultural and creative industries.

Journal of Arts management, law, and society

Journal of Cultural Economics

Launched in 1973, four issues of the Journal of Cultural Economics are published each year by Springer Verlag in collaboration with the Association for Cultural Economics International (ACEI). The journal focuses on the theoretical development of cultural economics, the application of economic analysis and econometrics, as well as various economic aspects of cultural policy and stakeholders in the area of culture.

Nordisk Kulturpolitisk Tidskrift (NKT)

NKT is published biannually by the Centre for Cultural Policy Research at the University of Borås, although the editorship rotates between various Nordic research environments. NKT is the only peer-reviewed cultural policy journal in the Nordic region and is published as open access. The journal has close ties to the Nordic Conference on Cultural Policy Research (NCCPR), which is held every other year.

Publications in Kulturanalys Norden


Currently 12 of 27 publications are displayed

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