Diversity and creativity in Australia

An increased focus on the importance of creativity to innovation is evident in recent research, and the nature of interactions between creativity and various types of diversity has been raised in a number of studies. While some limited research has been conducted into these relationships outside Australia, studies focusing on the Australian experience are noticeably absent. Policy makers often pay homage to international studies on ‘creatives’ to support policy direction, yet there is a paucity of research on Australian creatives, their spatial distribution and response to diversity. An understanding of Australian creatives is highly relevant to policymakers seeking to stimulate innovation and economic growth across spatial regions in Australia.

The research presented in this thesis explores the association between creativity and diversity across Australian regions. First, the spatial dispersion of creatives and the different types of diversity is investigated. Second, the thesis examines how the degree of diversity at the residential level may affect creatives’ locational decision making. This analysis is then extended to specific creative cohorts to assess whether their dispersion and association with diversity conforms to the overall group. Finally, the residential-level diversity focus is changed to an industry-level focus to consider whether creative employment is more strongly associated with industry diversity or concentration.

Results suggest that, although creatives in general tend to concentrate around each state’s capital city, the spatial distribution changes when specific cohorts of creatives are considered. The association between diversity and creatives is more complex than a simple linear relationship can capture. The associations change depending on the type of diversity and cohort of creatives being considered, both in direction and significance.

In general, the association between creatives (and the various cohorts of creatives examined) and the proportion of residents in same-sex relationships (used as a proxy for tolerance) is positive (albeit weak), while ancestry, migrant, linguistic and religious diversity produce variable results. These results suggest that a more detailed analysis of specific creative cohorts may provide improved understanding of the underlying associations between diversity and creativity, helping to further develop regions across Australia.

The relationship between creative employment and industry structure is less ambiguous, with regression results indicating that diversity in industries in which creative employment dominates, more likely leads to creative employment than when industry concentration occurs. If the existing research is accurate and creativity enhances innovation, then regions will benefit from encouraging diversity in industries in which creative employment is dominant.