Inventory of Youth Data in the Cultural Sector

Various organizations collect and use youth data on cultural education, participation, and experience. This research was conducted to inventory how the already available knowledge about young people can be used for and by the sector. Three research questions were posed:

• What data does the sector already possess?
• What needs exist to enrich this data?
• How can/would relevant parties play a role in this?

Needs

Various experts contributed to the research, and 68 cultural institutions answered questions about their needs. The research revealed that different methods are being used. Moreover, some parties only have secondary data (originating from other parties). Regarding the needs, there are many overlaps. There is a strong need for more youth data, particularly for optimizing services for young people. There is also a need for more insight into reach, reasons why young people do not attend, and the question of why young people are attracted to a certain product or institution.

Action Plan

The report concludes that it is not feasible to arrive at a joint data model all at once, partly due to the diversity of objectives and data collection methods for which youth data is used. The proposal is to gradually make youth data from the cultural sector accessible among parties. An action plan describes various objectives for both the short and long term.