PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AS AN AUDIENCE OF CULTURE – RESULTS OF PILOT RESEARCH IN MAŁOPOLSKA

Abstract

The subject of the research is the use of the offer of cultural institutions by people with disabilities. The results of research by other authors on this topic are presented in the beginning. At the same time, it was pointed out that there is a lack of cross-sectional research that would concern the participation of a diverse group of audience with disabilities in culture. The identified research gap was filled by conducting own pilot research. Their goal was to show how people with disabilities use the offer of cultural institutions and what to do to make it more accessible to them. The research problem was formulated as follows: What are the expectations and needs of people with disabilities in terms of broad-understood participation in culture and the level of satisfaction of cultural institutions in Małopolska. The survey technique was used in the study. Pilot studies conducted on the participation of people with disabilities in culture allow us to conclude that surveyed people with special needs willingly use the offer of cultural institutions and notice positive changes in the adaptation of cultural institutions of Małopolska to the needs of people with disabilities that have occurred over the last two years, but at the same time indicate what else is left to do. People with disabilities indicate that the biggest barrier to access to the cultural offer is social barrier resulting from a lack of understanding of the needs of people with disabilities.Keywords: accessibility, audience development, audience research, cultural institutions, culture management, people with disability