The Latest Results from Our Everyday Creativity Study

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In February 2021, the BC Alliance for Arts + Culture and Nanos Research distributed a general population survey to more than 500 adult residents of British Columbia. The survey focused on the role of creative activities in the lives of BC residents before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey used a broad definition of creative activity, with examples including listening to music, trying a new recipe, attending a performance, reading a book, visiting a museum of gallery, and more.

You can view our findings and recommendations here, but here's an even briefer synopsis.

As you might expect, people have turned increasingly toward using creative activities to improve mental health and reduce stress over the course of the pandemic.

It's also true that different communities spend different amounts of time being creative; for example, people who self-report as having lower than average income or self-identify as having a disability spend more hours engaging in creative activities. Additionally, parents and those with lower income placed the most importance on creativity.

What does all of this tell us? Broadly, all kinds of people find all kinds of value in creative activities, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take its toll on our collective mental health. The importance of making creativity accessible has never been more critical.

These are the broad outlines our most recent analysis, but they're not the whole story. To see a summary brief of the survey outcomes, click here, and stay tuned for more information.