Conceptual perspectives of cultural governance: a literature review (2000–2023)

This paper analyses the conceptual perspectives of cultural governance in research published in the Scopus and Web of Science databases. Methodologically, the paper takes a qualitative approach based on a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) of 161 articles with a temporal focus between 2000 and 2023. As results and contributions, bibliometric data on the publications and content analysis on the category studied are presented. The conceptual perspectives underlying cultural governance studies adopt generic, integrative, critical or functionalist approaches, generating four conceptual perspectives: (1) as control and governmentality policies of culture; (2) as resource administration of the cultural sector or self-management of cultural communities; (3) as an interface of rules that connects producers of culture with resource managers, and; (4) as a discursive strategy that promotes cooperative and economic development, without safeguarding the symbolic essence of the cultural. From the conceptual perspectives identified, cultural governance is a transdisciplinary field of research. Given its global magnitude, it is divergent in its conceptual grounding but open to functionalist and critical reflections on regional and international contexts.