Scottish household survey 2019: culture and heritage - report

Annex 1: Glossary

Cultural engagement is defined as those adults who have either attended at least one type of cultural event or place, or who have participated in a cultural activity in the last 12 months. 

"In the last 12 months" refers to the 12 months prior to the respondents interview and not the calendar year January-December 2019.

A number of changes were made to the Scottish Household Survey questions on culture and heritage in 2018. New response categories were added to better understand the nature and frequency of attendance and participation at cultural events / activities. For more information, please see Annex 2.

Attendance at a cultural event or visiting a place of culture can cover any of the following^[39]: 

• Cinema 
• Library (including mobile and online) 
• Classical music performance or opera 
• Live music event - e.g. traditional music, rock concert, jazz event (not opera or classical music performance) 
• Theatre - e.g. pantomime / musical / play 
• Dance show / event - e.g. ballet 
• Historic place - e.g. castle, stately home and grounds, battle or archaeological site  
• Museum 
• Art gallery 
• Exhibition - including art, photography and crafts 
• Street arts (e.g. musical performances or art in parks, streets or shopping centre) 
• Culturally specific festival (e.g. Mela / Feis / local Gala days) 
• Book festival or reading group 
• Archive or records office (e.g. Scotland’s Family History Peoples Centre)
• Streaming of a live performance (e.g. theatre or dance) into a local venue such as a cinema or community hall 
• None

Attendance at any cultural event or visiting any place of culture means that people attend at least one event/place from the available list asked of respondents in the survey (rather than each and every cultural event or place of culture).

Participation in a cultural activity can cover any of the following^[40]: 

• Read books for pleasure (including on a Kindle or other mobile device)
• Dance, either for fitness or not for fitness 
• Played a musical instrument or written music 
• Taken part in a play (including backstage) 
• Sang in a singing group or choir 
• Painting, drawing, printmaking or sculpture 
• Photography as an artistic activity (not family or holiday 'snaps') 
• Film- making/ video-making as an artistic activity 
• Used a computer to produce artwork or animation 
• Crafts such as knitting, wood, pottery, etc. 
• Creative writing - stories, books, plays or poetry 
• Viewed performances (e.g. music or dance) online on a smartphone, computer, smart TV etc 
• Viewed cultural content online (e.g. museum or heritage collections or artist’s work) 
• Shared art or creative content online that you have created yourself (such as digital art, music, dance, videos or recordings) 
• Other cultural activity 
• None

Participation in any cultural activity means that people do at least one activity from the available list asked of respondents in the survey (rather than each and every cultural activity).