Track 1.12: Transforming Communities through Promoting Inclusive Art Consumption

This track will explore how the arts can provide effective means to promote positive (and not predatory) inclusive community consumption and community well-being (Arsel et al., 2022). Community well-being is defined as the combination of social, economic, environmental, cultural, and political conditions that are deemed essential for individuals and communities to help them flourish and fulfil their potential (Wiseman and Brasher, 2008). A growing body of literature demonstrates that belonging to a community can have a positive effect on physical and mental health (Palis et al., 2020), emotional well-being and pro-sociality (Krekel et al., 2021). Moreover, community engagement as underlying practice can foster a sense of belonging and social connectedness which provides meaning and purpose. 

Of great importance for community engagement is the inclusion of groups that are disadvantaged and/or marginalized by social institutions and norms. Inclusivity can be defined as the process of creating a culture that fosters belongingness and incorporates diverse groups (Arsel et al., 2022). Inclusivity allows marginalized voices to be heard and become more visible (Pratt, 2019). Inclusive community engagement thus supports sidelined groups who, either due to sexual orientation, gender, geography, ethnicity, and/or religion, are more likely to experience poorer health, social inequalities, and social outcomes (Healy and McKee, 2004). Participation in the arts and culture can also increase well-being by strengthening individuals’ self-confidence, self-esteem, and sense of self-worth, as well as by reducing depression, anxiety, stress, and loneliness levels (Fancourt and Finn, 2019). Furthermore, there is evidence that collective arts and cultural activities promote community well-being, cohesion, and development (Roy et al. (2018). In other words, art consumption practices have the potential to provide inclusive community engagement and well-being. Thus, community consumption is about finding ways allowing diverse communities (as in the case of migrants/diasporas) to come together as a whole. The value of community consumption often goes beyond purely commercial measures and is manifested in experiences through the arts and music and/or cultural exchanges, among others, that have therapeutic, emotive, and ludic qualities (Holbrook and Hirschman, 1982), and are more often marked by their low carbon intensity, and their potential to support well-being (Druckman and Gatersleben, 2019). Aimed at tackling the unequal access to products and services and the active fostering of community-well-being, inclusive consumption thus stands in stark contrast to attempts by rogue marketeers and businesses of “art washing”. Instead, inclusive consumption focuses on practices that allow inclusivity in the marketplace by fostering ways that provide value during consumption activities including acquisition, use, or disposition. We believe that the arts can provide a vehicle and create opportunities for inclusive consumption that will eventually lead to community consumption.

Track Objectives

• To identify organizations that have used the arts to transform a community and promote community well-being;
• To provide opportunities for capacity building that allows to conduct research which has practical implications and translates into real world approaches;
  
• To build a theoretical model using one or more cases to create theoretical constructs, propositions and/or midrange theory from case-based, empirical evidence (Eisenhardt, 1989);
  
• To develop a research paper that will be submitted to an appropriate journal connected with TCR 2023.
  
  

Participant profile
We seek contributors from across the world with an interest in research that supports community well-being particularly through utilizing any form of arts. All disciplinary, theoretical, and methodological perspectives are welcomed; however, preference will be given to those who will engage in a process of relational engagement that brings them into the field doing real interventions, allowing to document in-depth insights providing cross-fertilization across other TCR areas. We especially encourage applications that follow research strategies aiming to build theory through case studies and other methods to allow for the unearthing of diverse insights of inclusive community consumption approaches and projects. The track will comprise approximately eight to ten contributors including the two co-chairs. Early career scholars and those in the final stages of their Ph.D. are encouraged to apply. Lastly, we welcome applications from external stakeholders that are interested in being involved in the research track. To assist with preconference team recruitment and selection efforts, applicants should provide the following: 

• Short statement as to what triggers the interest in this field;
  
• Art category and desired organization they wish to study/include. This should include a brief overview of existing connections they have to the organization (if any) and/or how they plan to approach them if no pre-existing connections are in place; 
  
• Overview of theoretical and methodological approaches that will be utilized in the proposed research; 
  
• A list of selected publications relevant to the field of study including a brief explanation of how each publication supports this project; and
  
• Future research interests
  
  

Track Structure

Pre-conference activities

• Identify Carriers of Impact and Literature review: Jan23 – Mar23
  
• Initial data gathering: Apr23-Jun23
  

Conference activities

• Conference Day one: 19th June – Morning Session 9am – 12pm
  
  • Brief introductions. Framework of inclusive community art consumption.
    
• Conference Day one: 19th June – Afternoon Session 2pm – 5pm
  
  • Summary and key themes from morning session. 
    
• Conference Day two: 20th June – Morning Session 9am – 12pm
  
  • Publication outline. 
    

Post-conference activities
Co-chairs will guide the team to finalize and submit the article. 
Meeting for dissemination plans

For queries related to this track please email: Athina Dilmperi, a.dilmperi@mdx.ac.uk 

To apply to this track, please email a Research Vision to Athina Dilmperi, a.dilmperi@mdx.ac.uk 

References

Arsel, Z., Crockett, D. and Scott, M.L. (2022) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Journal of Consumer Research: A Curation and Research Agenda, Journal of Consumer Research, 48(5), pp. 920-933. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucab057
Druckman, A. and Gatersleben, B. (2019) A time-use approach: high subjective wellbeing, low carbon leisure. Journal of Public Mental Health. 18(2), pp. 85-93. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPMH-04-2018-0024
Eisenhardt, K. M. (1989) Building theories from case study research. Academy of Management Review, 14, pp. 532–550.
Fancourt, D. and Finn, S. (2019) What is the evidence on the role of the arts in improving health and well-being? A scoping review. World Health Organization, Health Evidence Network Synthesis, Report 67. Available at: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/329834/9789289054553-eng.pdf  
Healy J. and McKee M. (2004) Accessing health care: responding to diversity. International Journal of Epidemiology, 33 (6), pp. 1418. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyh356 
Holbrook, M. B. and Hirschman, E. C. (1982) The experiential aspects of consumption: Consumer fantasies, feelings, and fun. The Journal of Consumer Research, 9(2), 132–140.
Krekel, C. et al. (2021) A local community course that raises wellbeing and pro-sociality: Evidence from a randomised controlled trial” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 188, pp. 322-336. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2021.05.021  
Palis, H., Marchand, K. and Oviedo-Joekes, E. (2020) The relationship between sense of community belonging and self-rated mental health among Canadians with mental or substance use disorders, Journal of Mental Health, 29:2, 168-175. doi: 10.1080/09638237.2018.1437602
Pratt, B. (2019) Inclusion of Marginalized Groups and Communities in Global Health Research Priority-Setting. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics, 14(2), pp. 169–181. https://doi.org/10.1177/1556264619833858
Roy, B. et al. (2018) Collective Well-Being to Improve Population Health Outcomes: An Actionable Conceptual Model and Review of the Literature. American Journal of Health Promotion, 32(8), pp. 1800–1813. doi: 10.1177/0890117118791993.
Wiseman, J. and Brasher, K. (2008) Community Wellbeing in and Unwell World: Trends, Challenges, and Possibilities. Journal of Public Health Policy, 29(3), pp. 353-366. doi: 10.1057/jghp.2008.16 

Track Chair Bios

Athina Dilmperi is a Senior Lecturer in Consumption, Research Lead of the Consumer Research for Well-being cluster and Co-Convenor of the PhD Training and Development Program. at Middlesex University Business School.  Athina’s research aims to provide solutions to practitioners on how to increase societal welfare. Specifically, she studies how particular forms of consumption improve or impair individual or collective well-being. Her recent publication in the Journal of International Marketing investigated the impact of dance lessons on productivity and subjective well-being. She has also published in academic journals such as Psychology & Marketing, Journal of Business Research and Annals of Tourism Research.

Patrick Elf is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Enterprise and Economic Development Research (CEEDR) at Middlesex University, and Co-Investigator at the ESRC funded Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity (CUSP) at the University of Surrey. Patrick’s research focuses on investigating avenues for behaviour change approaches towards the adoption of more sustainable lifestyles and mechanism towards the adaptation of sustainable business models. He has a particular interest in sustainable and transformative consumption and has most recently researched the impact of disruptive events such as the Covid-19 pandemic as facilitators of sustainable consumption pathways in the context of Brazil.

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