| This dissertation examined family structure characteristics of young adults and how those characteristics affect young adult participation patterns with nonprofit art and cultural organizations. For the purposes of this research, participation with organizations includes those classified by the National Endowment for the Arts as benchmark arts organizations; those that offer ballet, classical music, jazz, musical and nonmusical plays, opera, visual art, history and science in a museum setting, outdoor festivals, popular music, craft fairs, folk arts, and other live performing arts. Participation is defined as a combination of attendance, philanthropic donations or membership and volunteerism with those organizations. Family structure characteristics include disposable income, education level, parental status, and marital status. Young adults are defined as those aged 18-46 at the time the sample was collected. Secondary data from the National Endowment for the Arts Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA) was used to measure participation of young adults with nonprofit arts and culture organizations using a quantitative time-lag multi regression analysis model. SPPA data from 1982, 1992, 2002, and 2012 survey cycles were included in this research, and data from young adults who were 18-46 years of age in the year of the survey were used to provide information on changes in family structure and participation from generation to generation. This study used Azjen's theory of planned behavior as a theoretical model creating the expectation that the circumstances of young adults' lives will impact their perception of arts participation and their intentions to volunteer or attend arts events. Results of the study indicated that while disposable income, education level, and parental status all play a role in determining either volunteerism or attendance in arts events, marital status impacted neither while changing over time. Additionally, the results of this study indicated that while participation with arts events might be decreasing, volunteerism may be on the rise. This insight offers hope to arts organizations that young people still retain an interest in the arts, and that their volunteerism and attendance can be recaptured and increased through thoughtful engagement. |
