Arts, culture, and health – a Norwegian literature review: Does it bring us any further? Kulturdirektoratet, 2025, “Kunnskapsoversikt: Kunst, kultur og helse”. ISBN: 978-82-810-5172-0. https://www.kulturdirektoratet.no/web/guest/vis-publikasjon/-/kunnskapsoversikt-kunst-kultur-og-helse
Year: 2025
Type: book-review
Abstract: The Norwegian report, "Kunnskapsoversikt: Kunst, kultur og helse" (Kulturdirektoratet, 2025) (Literature review: Arts, culture, and health), aims to examine the impact of arts and culture on health and wellbeing, focusing on research and policy development from the Nordic countries.The report is based on a Swedish literature review, Kulturens roll och nytta i samhällsutvecklingen (Myndigheten för kulturanalys i Sverige, 2023), and on a rapid review approach. Content and characteristics of the reportOverall, the report is written in a straightforward manner and provides an easily-accessible introduction to the field.The report consists of 13 pages, with seven pages of findings divided into 12 sections, covering the impact of arts and culture on, for example, health and wellbeing, illness prevention, parent-child attachment, symptom relief, illness mastery, and social support.Moreover, the report mentions the severe critique of the field, for instance, methodological shortcomings, publication bias, and overexaggerated and premature conclusions. Limitations regarding informing of practice and policyThe report is described as a form of research communication, thus, ideally presenting properly curated research as objectively as possible.However, the way in which the first part of the report is written risks encouraging confirmation bias and conclusions drawn from limited -or even misleading -study reports and reviews.These shortcomings are not sufficiently connected to the later discussion of critical contributions in the field.In this way, the report does not comply to existing standards for creating evidence-based knowledge and a well-informed ground for policy development.
DOI: 10.18261/njach.7.1.4
Author: Mette Kaasgaard
Institutions: University of Southern Denmark, Zealand University Hospital
Language: English
Subfield: Conservation
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4415618334