Traditionally, the arts have been perceived as an exclusive domain, primarily accessible to individuals with higher socioeconomic status. However, with the widespread use of social media, access to artistic and aesthetic experiences is becoming more democratized. Museums and art institutions now engage audiences by sharing curated collections and interacting with users online, while the COVID-19 pandemic further accelerated the rise of virtual exhibitions. As a result, more people can engage with the arts remotely, reducing barriers to aesthetic consumption.
Professor Cheng-Chieh Hsiao from Shih Hsin University and Professor Kuan-Ju Chen from National Chengchi University analyzed data from the Taiwan Communication Survey (TCS), Phase II, Wave 4: “Emerging Communication Technologies and Everyday Life” (2020). Their research examined how social media users encounter aesthetic content and the relationship between aesthetic value creation and online content-sharing behavior.
The study confirmed that whether users actively seek out or passively encounter aesthetic content, both experiences significantly enhance their cognitive and emotional aesthetic values. When these values are heightened, users are more likely to share art-related content on social media—such as favorite artworks or exhibition impressions—as a form of personal engagement and expression.
However, the study also found that despite social media making the arts more accessible, individuals with higher socioeconomic status remain more inclined to engage with and share aesthetic content online. These users tend to express their aesthetic experiences more frequently, highlighting that background differences continue to shape patterns of aesthetic participation.
In today’s diverse digital media landscape, a pressing challenge is how to create differentiated content strategies that bridge the gap between the public and the arts, overcoming background limitations and enhancing the effective dissemination of aesthetic knowledge. The TCS (Phase Two, Year Four): New Communication Technologies & Life Boundary Expansion focuses on how emerging media foster new usage behaviors, offering a valuable resource for researchers interested in media, technology, and cultural participation.
