Cultural and Sports Participation in France: Choices, Diversity, and Accumulation

Abstract

The French 2003 survey of household living conditions includes a cultural and sports participation module that covers radio and television consumption, reading, cultural outings, amateur activities, and sports, but also hunting and fishing. The social differentiation of attitudes to recreational activities is primarily determined by an accumulation criterion, which categorises individuals on the basis of the number and frequency of the activities in which they engage. Most activities do not seem mutually exclusive. People are all the more likely to engage in one if they already engage in another. An individuals ranking on the activity-accumulation scale seems more correlated with educational attainment than with income level. Differences in attitudes do not appear solely determined by the accumulation criterion. There is a contrast between persons who are not significantly engaged and two profiles of persons substantially more involved: individuals participating chiefly in sports activities, and individuals participating mainly in cultural activities.Cultural Consumption, Social Stratification, Leisure, Time Use