What is cultural policy research?

Citation: Scullion, A. and García, B. “What is cultural policy research?” in: International Journal of Cultural Policy (2005: vol 11, n2) (pp. 113-127)

Cultural policy research exists in many contexts, asks many different kinds of questions and adopts a wide repertoire of research methodologies from a raft of academic discourses. This essay investigates the research questions and approaches being undertaken by those working in this field. To achieve this the essay draws upon readings of contemporary publications in the field and on the authors’ experiences of building a research capacity in the area of cultural policy in a British – and, more particularly, a post-devolution Scottish – university. The essay traces the emergence of an academic discipline in the field and seeks to advance this by reviewing a tripartite research agenda investigating: the history and historiography of cultural policy; the principles and strategies of cultural policy; and, the relationships between cultural policy and cultural theory/cultural studies.

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