Art in my world: Exploring the visual art experiences in the everyday lives of young children and their impact on cultural capital

Abstract

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Family socioeconomic status and the parent–child relationship in Chinese adolescents: the multiple serial mediating roles of visual art activities

“…Plausibly, although there is a limited number of studies regarding visual art experiences outside of school [ 10 , 46 , 52 , 53 ], it is well documented as the most promising ECA known for advocating children’s well-being [ 2 , 22 , 24 , 25 , 51 , 54 ]. Visual art activities are a form of events that children and parents engage in, such as painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and crafts [ 8 , 16 , 18 , 22 , 24 – 28 , 52 , 53 ]. Despite the fact that these visual art activities broaden children’s horizons to help them view their surroundings and the world differently [ 9 , 18 , 26 , 51 ], most evidence has concentrated on determining children’s cognitive development (e.g., [ 24 , 32 , 34 , 50 , 54 ]).…”

“…A recent systematic review that synthesizes the literature demonstrates that an overwhelming amount of evidence assesses the relationship between art activities and academic achievement [ 49 ], which neglects other vital aspects of children’s development. Additionally, visual art activity participation was measured as an experience at home, in art galleries, community centers, and museums supervised by an adult (parent or caregivers) [ 10 , 28 , 33 , 45 , 55 , 56 ]. Thus, the present study sought to categorize out-of-school visual art activities (a) organized by private training centers and (b) in- and out-of-home visual art activities supervised by parents.…”

“…Although visual activities benefit disadvantaged children, the possibility of children participating in visual art activities in and out of the home is determined by the SES of parents [ 10 , 22 , 32 , 46 , 53 , 54 ], particularly maternal social position [ 33 , 45 ]. Unlike Western countries [ 26 – 28 , 46 , 47 , 50 , 55 , 56 ], in China, intensive organized visual art activities for primary and middle school children are available at private-owned centers and in-home and out-of-home visual art activities supervised by parents, which costs a fortune. Educated and financially capable parents would send their children to private art classes and accompany them to their sessions [ 32 , 38 ].…”

“…Hence, affluent children show receptive visual art participation in paid art classes; they have a higher probability of enjoying visual art activities at home and attending art galleries, visiting museums, and meeting iconic artists due to their parental cultural capital [ 34 , 38 , 47 , 53 ]. Consequently, affluent children participate in organized visual art activities in private centers and adult-supervised visual art activities in and out of the home, which reinforces social inequality [ 53 , 54 ] and shows the importance of cultural capital [ 28 , 33 , 34 , 39 , 47 , 53 ]. In contrast, low-SES children spend their leisure time on activities that are unsupervised by adults such as watching TV and playing games, which have an adverse effect on their behavior and communication skills with parents and peers [ 23 , 33 , 34 , 38 ].…”

“…For decades, Chinese parents put extensive pressure on their children’s academic performance through intensive private tutoring classes after primary school time, which led to an adverse effect on children's academic, emotional, and, most importantly, the quality of the parent–child relationship [ 14 ]. On the other hand, shared extracurricular activities (ECAs) enhance the emotional attachment between parents and children; explicitly unlike other ECAs, visual art activities such as painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and crafts do not require deep knowledge and skill from parents in order for them to be involved in, support, and celebrate their children’s creativity [ 8 , 22 , 24 – 28 ]. Hence, the recent national policy reform is expected to stimulate the traditional parent–child relationship by preventing parents from sending their children to after school tutoring centers and reducing the overwhelming amount of homework that was previously given by teachers so that parents and children can have family time by encouraging parents to become involved in in- or out-of-home ECAs and private owned training centers that service several ECAs [ 14 ].…”