Abstract

In the UK, the socio-economic impact of the arts has been a subject of interest to policymakers and researchers through the 1980s and 1990s. However, since the late 1990s increasing emphasis has been placed on the role the arts can play in achieving social inclusion goals. Numerous claims have been made about the positive impact of the arts but the existing evidence, when scrutinised more closely, has been criticised on several counts. There have been calls for more 'robust' evidence but research in this field, as in any other, has its challenges. This paper explores some good practice research principles and considers some of the practical challenges inherent in applying such principles to this area of work.