Sweden

Last update: February, 2024

Increasing cultural participation has been a central aim of Swedish cultural policy at least since the 1970’s. As such, it has been included in the instructions to every government agency dealing with arts and culture. In the words of the present objectives for Swedish cultural policy (see chapter 1.1), “Everyone should be able to participate in cultural life.” Historically, such programmes have focused on making arts and culture activities available throughout the country – which is the second least densely populated country in the EU – and on widening audiences in terms of class and education background. In recent decades, increased emphasis has been placed on other factors, such as gender, functional disability, sexual orientation, and immigrant background, as well.

Within theatre / music, visual arts, and literature, there are organisations aimed at increasing cultural participation specifically supported by the government for such purposes. Cultural organisations are also involved in neighbourhood projects, and in finding new ways to promote culture to new groups of people. Skådebanan (theatre and music) provides information and tickets through special voluntary representatives at workplaces. The National Touring Theatre (Riksteatern) has long been active in making arts and culture available throughout the country. Konstfrämjandet (mainly visual arts) reach people in their working environment to promote purchasing of professional art, mainly graphic, and literature, at reduced prices so that quality art can be accessible to all. Public libraries exist in all municipalities. Every year a catalogue (Barnbokskatalogen) is distributed by the Swedish Arts Council listing all newly published children's literature. The catalogue is intended to spark an interest in reading by showcasing the new and exciting books that become available. The catalogue is free and is distributed to libraries, bookstores, and schools.

Policies intended to enhance the participation of citizens in cultural life and, particularly, in artistic activities, also focus on the availability of both in-school and out-of-school arts education. The Creative School programme (Skapande skola) is a government programme allowing municipalities and other school principals to apply for grants from the Swedish Arts Council for culture projects involving children in preschools, and in the obligatory first ten years of school (ages 6-16 years old). Projects within the Creative School programme have been granted nearly SEK 197 million for grants for the school year 2023/24. Voluntary municipal music schools also exist in most municipalities, providing after-school activities for schoolchildren. Since the 1990’s their activities have widened their focus from classical music to a broad selection of cultural expressions, including subjects such as music, dance, drama, theatre, and art, with music retaining its status as the most commonly offered subject.

The major recipients of government grants for cultural activities on the amateur level have long been the national study associations (studieförbund), but with the national budget proposed for 2024, their national funding is reduced for the first time in decades. To this are added varying sums from local and regional governments, as well as income from various fees. Statistics show that most of the activities organized by the study associations can be described as cultural activities, ranging from lectures and study circles on cultural matters to rock music and theatre groups rehearsing. Easily available music training and public facilities for rehearsals have often been pointed out as an explanation for Sweden's internationally successful music scene. Others have pointed to the prevalence of cultural group activities such as study circles and singing in choirs to explain the cohesiveness and high levels of trust in Swedish society.

Last update: February, 2024

In 2022, most Swedes under 65 years old were culturally active, in the sense of visiting at least one cultural institution per year (concert, film, library, museum, drama, art exhibition). During the Covid-19 pandemic numbers have been considerably lower, but now they appear to have recovered to pre-pandemic numbers in most fields. The general trend for many years has been for increasing numbers of older people attending cultural events. Younger people have shown a decrease in activity in the traditional activities in arts and culture. In 2022, 40 percent – more than before the pandemic – attended pop or rock concerts, 18 percent classical concerts or opera performances, 62 percent visited historical sites, 50 visited museums, and 54 percent public libraries, 20 percent sang in choirs or played instruments, 78 percent had read at least one book in the last year, and 95 percent had listened to music, making this the most common cultural activity. Analysis of the statistics show that women generally appear to have a wider interest in the arts than men. (SCB 2023).

While younger people show less attendance at traditional cultural events than other age groups, they participate actively in cultural activities to a higher degree; this includes not only new activities, but also established activities such as playing music and participating in amateur theatre. Young Swedes also access the Internet more than other age groups and are active users of a number of Internet services for publishing their own work. Internet use in Sweden is among the highest in the world. In 2022, 96 percent of Swedes had access to the internet, and 91 percent used it daily (Internetstiftelsen 2023). In 2020, 65 percent used the internet to watch movies, or TV series, and 69 percent to listen to music. During the Covid-19 pandemic, internet use became more central in people´s lives (SCB 2020), while fewer people attended live events.

Reading trends among adults have remained stable since the 1990’s, but young people read less (at least when it comes to printed material), and men read less than women. While the reading of books has decreased somewhat, listening to audio books has increased over the last ten years, including among the young. In 2022, 36 percent read books every week, and 19 percent listened to books every week (SCB 2023).

Table 3: People who participated in or attended a certain cultural activity during the last 12 months in Sweden (in percent of the population 2018-2022).

Source(s): The SOM Institute. University of Gothenburg.
* only movies included.
** From 2000 also including computer games and mobile games.

N/A: data not available. No data present for this measure

Data is based on a survey with a representative sample of Sweden's population, 18-65 years old.

Table 4: People who have carried out artistic activities in Sweden in the last 12 months by type of activity, in percent of total population, period 2018-2022

Source(s): The SOM Institute, University of Gothenburg.

N/A: data not available. No data present for this measure

Data is based on a survey with a representative sample of Sweden's population, 18-65 years old.

Last update: February, 2024

Source(s): Data on expenditures from SCB (customized data from statistics on household expenditures. Based on COICOP), population from SCB, Conversion rate from The Swedish Tax office.

* including streaming.

Conversion from SEK to EURO based on monthly data from the Swedish tax office: https://www.skatteverket.se/foretag/drivaforetag/euronochskatterna/omrakningskurser/redovisningsperioder.4.2ef18e6a125660db8b080004155.html

Population based on the total population at the end of each year.

Last update: February, 2024

In total, the voluntary cultural organizations cooperating in Ideell Kulturallians claim over a million members, and over 20 million personal visits annually. These organizations are, in most cases, organised in a way typical of Swedish NGOs, each dealing with amateur activities in a particular art form, or other cultural activity, e.g., choirs, music, theatre, traditional crafts, or local heritage. The largest of these organizations has long been the Swedish Local Heritage Federation (Svenska Hembygdsförbundet), which, in 2012, reported over 430,000 members in 1,973 clubs all over the country. Large national associations organize national and ethnic minorities, organizing many cultural activities in both Swedish and their native languages. While many organizations have high numbers of active members, their financial resources remain limited, and their activities to a high degree rely on volunteers. Civil society organisations in arts and culture have estimated that the total number of hours of voluntary work in their activities is nearly 16 million, or an average of 100 hours a year per volunteer. In addition, most state museums have a "friends of" association attached to them and these have, in many cases, provided significant financial contributions to the museum. Compared to volunteer work in other areas, volunteer work in arts and culture decreased from 7 percent of all volunteer work in 2009 to 5 percent in 2019 (von Essen 2020).

Most government funding for national associations in culture does not come via the Ministry of Culture, or from its government agencies. Government funding for voluntary cultural organizations, as such, is relatively limited – on the national level, as well as on the regional and local levels. If such organizations receive government funding, they tend to receive funding designed for other purposes. Some of them are registered as youth organizations and others are organizations for national or ethnic minorities, both of which are eligible to access special funding, and which have access to specially designated government funds. Under the present government there appears to be a tendency to further tighten control of funding for civil society organizations. In the national budget for 2024, the government also removed the special support for ethnic organizations.

The major recipients of government grants for cultural amateur activities are the study associations. In 2023, their annual funding from the national government amounted to more than SEK 1.8 billion. To this are added varying sums from local and regional governments, as well as income from various fees. In the national budget for 2024, this sum was reduced by SEK 250 million, and with the intention of reducing it by SEK 500 million the following year. Statistics show that most of the activities organized by the study associations can be described as cultural activities, ranging from lectures and study circles on cultural matters to rock music and theatre groups rehearsing. Easily available music training and public facilities for rehearsals have often been pointed out as an explanation for Sweden's internationally successful music scene. Others have pointed to the prevalence of cultural group activities such as study circles and singing in choirs to explain the cohesiveness and high levels of trust in Swedish society.

Culture houses of various sorts are maintained by many Swedish municipalities. These often include public libraries (which exist in all Swedish municipalities), theatres and other local cultural institutions. Other cultural houses are maintained by the municipalities for leisure activities for young people (fritidsgårdar). New and larger cultural houses, concert halls, and art galleries have been built in recent decades by relatively large municipalities, such as Helsingborg and Karlstad, in small communities, like Hässleholm, Vara, Mariefred, and Skärhamn, as well as in suburbs of major cities, e.g., the Centre for Cultural Diversity in Botkyrka (Stockholm) and the Dream House in Rosengård (Malmö).

Three major national associations are supported by the national government to maintain cultural houses and other similar facilities throughout the country: Folkets Hus och Parker, Våra Gårdar and Bygdegårdarnas Riksförbund. All three have a background in the popular movements that arose in the late 19th century. The largest of the three is Folkets Hus och Parker, an organization maintaining about 900 venues all over the country. It has close ties to other organizations sharing its origins in the labour movement.

Many cultural activities, e.g., choir singing, often take place within the framework of registered religious denominations. The largest of these is the Church of Sweden, with 5.5 million members. When analyzing trends in the Swedish voluntary sector, it is worth noting that the Church of Sweden was separated from the state in 2000. It is thus now a part of the voluntary sector. Before 2000, it was, on the other hand, a public body. The size of the voluntary sector can thus be said to have increased significantly, regardless of any change in the habits of the population.

Studies indicate that the voluntary sector in Sweden is increasingly organized in non-profit associations with a more limited number of members and a large number of non-member supporters and volunteers, or with large numbers of passive members. It is possible that the younger generation is not, as has been suggested, skeptical towards the voluntary organization as a form, but simply takes a more practical approach to it, placing the activity before the organizational form. It could also be that organizations of the old model are decreasing in importance and that cultural activities are increasingly organized in new ways. One should, however, not assume that the new modes of organization are entirely different from the old ones. New movements and forms of culture are often cooperating with older organizations, even when they themselves are more informally organized. The organizational forms of new cultural expressions appear to still be an open issue.