This study on older adults suggests that regular engagement in receptive arts activities, such as attending galleries or performances, is associated with increased odds of healthy aging two and four years later, while participatory arts activities showed mixed associations with health outcomes, indicating potential benefits of receptive arts for prolonging healthspan and overall well-being.

This study finds that individual engagement in extracurricular arts activities is associated with fewer adolescent externalizing behaviors, suggesting a benefit in risk reduction for such behaviors, while no association was found with school-based arts engagement or the provision of arts classes and facilities at the school level.

This study demonstrates that greater social, cultural, and community engagement (SCCE) among older adults is linked to more dental and outpatient care, shorter hospital stays, and reduced need for home health and nursing home care, suggesting SCCE promotes beneficial health-seeking behaviors and could help optimize health care utilization and reduce financial burdens on the health system.

This study on a US sample during the COVID-19 pandemic found that home-based creative activities like gardening, woodwork/DIY, and arts/crafts are associated with reduced depressive and anxiety symptoms and increased life satisfaction, whereas excessive media consumption is linked to increased depressive symptoms, highlighting the importance of specific types of activities for mental health and well-being during lockdowns.

This study finds that engagement in school-based arts activities is associated with increased social support among adolescents, suggesting extracurricular arts provide valuable opportunities for social engagement and community building, despite no direct association with loneliness.

This study explores the social patterns of home-based arts engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic in the US, finding that factors like social support, network size, age, race/ethnicity, and experiences of abuse were associated with engagement in activities such as reading, arts and crafts, and digital arts, while socioeconomic and health-related factors had less impact.

This longitudinal study on emerging adults finds that increased arts engagement is associated with enhanced flourishing, particularly in psychological and social wellbeing, with these benefits more pronounced in metropolitan areas, suggesting the need for equitable arts access across communities to support youth development.

This study found that participation in community arts groups among older adults is associated with improved aspects of wellbeing, including higher positive affect, life satisfaction, purpose in life, and mastery, even after adjusting for demographic, socioeconomic, and health factors, suggesting the value of arts engagement in promoting fulfilling and satisfying lives during aging.

This study demonstrates that arts and cultural engagement in adolescence is linked to reduced antisocial or criminalized behaviors and suggests improved self-control and attitudes towards these behaviors as potential mechanisms, based on findings from two large, nationally representative cohorts.

This study finds that certain leisure activities, such as hobbies, clubs, and baking, are linked to lower rates of depression among older adults, highlighting the importance of supporting active participation in these activities as a means to promote mental health.

This study investigates the predictors of arts engagement among older adults, revealing age-related variations in engagement factors and socioeconomic inequalities, with the aim of enhancing accessibility to the health benefits of arts and cultural activities.

This study examines how demographic and socioeconomic factors influence different types of arts engagement in the US, finding a social gradient in arts event attendance but not in other forms of arts participation.

The research brief by One Nation/One Project proposes a new, inclusive definition for "arts participation" to enhance public health research by considering a wide range of artistic and creative practices across different communities.