‘Culture is a Meritocracy’: Why Creative Workers’ Attitudes may Reinforce Social Inequality

Abstract

The attitudes and values of cultural and creative workers are an important element of explaining current academic interest in inequality and culture. To date, quantitative approaches to this element of cultural and creative inequality has been overlooked, particularly in British research. This paper investigates the attitudes of those working in creative jobs with a unique dataset, a web survey of creative Using principal components analysis and regression, we have three main findings. First, in contrast to Richard Florida's thesis on the attitudes and values attitudes were no more meritocratic than those of the general population. Second, those with the strongest belief in meritocracy in the sector are those in the most privileged positions, specifically those are best-rewarded by the sector. Third, our research provides support for existing qualitative research on attitudes in the cultural sector, in which the worst-rewarded workers are most aware of structural inequality. We conclude that the attitudes held by creative workers, and who holds which attitudes, make it unlikely that access to the sector and trajectories of individual progression within the sector will change. These findings also have important implications for current public interest in whether access to creative work is limited to those from privileged backgrounds.

Inequality talk: How discourses by senior men reinforce exclusions from creative occupations

“…So that does still have an effect. (Nigel, film and TV director white, working-class origins, 40s) This position is in line with recent work suggesting many in the CCIs foreground talent and hard work to explain career success, irrespective of their race, gender, or class (Taylor and O'Brien, 2017). However, even in the attachment to talent there is still recognition that women face discrimination in the film industry, and that talent is not enough to overcome barriers, unlike in the case of class.…”

“…So, they will commission something that they think is diverse or is catering to or reflecting a certain part of the audience perhaps, but it's still their idea of what it is. (John, journalism, white middle-class origins, 40s) However, even when inequality was recognised and foregrounded in discussions of working in cultural and creative professions, talent and hard work were still seen as vital to success (Taylor and O'Brien, 2017). In Nigel's comments, we see echoes of Gerald's insistence that his industry was open with low barriers to entry.…”

Understanding the liminality of individual giving to the arts

“…Since liminal roles (such as consultants and freelancers) are commonplace in the arts world, organisations might be assumed to be adept at communicating their values and practices to the liminal associates who routinely contribute to the work of the organisation: however, research on the informal networks of cultural intermediaries (Perry, Smith & Warren, 2015) and the social inequalities of internships and volunteering in the arts (Taylor & O'Brien, 2017) shows that this is a problematic area. Organisations' understanding of their members' and donors' roles as liminals are likely to be even less developed, and the impact of these relationships not fully articulated or understood.…”

The art of the good life: culture and sustainable prosperity

“…The last twenty years of neoliberal cultural policies (Hesmondlagh, Nisbett, Oakley & Lee, 2014), have seen the cultural sector become more and more implicated in processes of exclusion and inequality even as many artists have suffered from the same processes, and those in these sectors continue to identify themselves as progressives (Taylor & O'Brien, 2017). The harmonious marriage between high growth capitalism and culture is broken, much as our economic model is broken, though public policy continues to push both (Bazalgette, 2017).…”