Economists have linked some cultural beliefs to higher levels of economic development. One of these, inevitably, is a population’s willingness to engage in markets, whether through investment or employment.

Cultural economics is the branch of economics that studies the relation of culture to economic outcomes. Here, ‘culture’ is defined by the shared beliefs and preferences of respective groups. Programmatic issues include whether and how much culture matters as to economic outcomes and what its relation is to institutions. As a growing field in behavioral economics, the role of culture in economic behavior is increasingly being demonstrated to cause significant differentials in decision-making and the management and valuation of assets.

• How does Social Culture Affect Economic Development?
• What is the Relationship Between Culture and Economics?
• What are the 4 Factors Affecting the Economy?
• What are Socio-Cultural Factors in Economics?
• How does Culture Affect the Development of a Country?
• What are the Factors That May Affect Economic Trends?
• What are the 6 Characteristics that Affect Economic Growth?
• What are the Social and Economic Benefits of Culture?
• What are Examples of Cultural Impacts?
• What are the 10 Economic Factors?

How does Social Culture Affect Economic Development?

Every society has a set of values, beliefs, traditions, and habits known as sociocultural values. These values shape how we approach to risk, how we view careers, our perceptions of money, and our ideas of an ideal lifestyle. Because of this, sociocultural values are one of many interacting factors that can impact economic development within a country.

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Economic development is when is a society shifts from traditional, agricultural-based living standards into an industrialized and business-driven society, for example, the Industrial Revolution and the move from farming to factory jobs. In general, economic development is associated with a higher quality of life and an overall increase in the standard of living.

Because sociocultural values influence how we, as people in society, interact with the world, they also influence how we approach the process of economic development.

Sociocultural Values

Some sociocultural values that can impact economic development include:

• Materialism/Post-materialism
• Collectivism/Individualism
• Innovation
• Religion
• Obedience
• Thrift
• Risk propensity

Materialism is the tendency to place greater value on physical needs or belongings than quality of life and spirituality. Post-materialism places greater value on spiritual well-being, quality of life, and relationships. Societies high in materialism are most likely to seek greater economic development in order to have more physical belongings.

In contrast, post-materialist societies focus on enjoying the life available to them. Importantly, post-materialist societies are most likely to be identified in countries that are already developed and their material needs have been met.

Collectivism is a value that leads people to act for the greater good of the entire population, while individualism suggests that people should make decisions for their own benefit, since maximizing individual happiness is the best way to maximize societal happiness.

In collectivist societies, activities that lead to economic development should benefit the majority, if not all, of the population. However, in individualist societies, one person is concerned about their own satisfaction and economic development—often with little or no regard for the well-being of the greater society.

Innovation considers how interested culture is in progress. Cultures high on innovation are excited and interested in new technologies, changes to society, and ultimately, economic growth. In contrast, cultures low on innovation may be fearful or hesitant to implement anything new into their society.

The values taught within religion influence how individuals approach everyday activities. In turn, these values and beliefs can influence personal decisions on work, business ventures, and industrialization.

Obedience refers to how much citizens conform to social norms and expectations. High obedience means that decisions made are in line with the cultural norms, and people are discouraged from doing anything outside of these norms.

Thrift, or frugality, refers to how much the culture saves money and sees value in saving money. Some cultures are focused on saving and not spending, while others are more interested in investment and making a profit. Because economic development requires both saving and spending, the level of thrift and practices of spending within the culture can have an important impact on further development.

And finally, risk propensity is the level of risk an individual is naturally inclined to accept. Cultures high in risk propensity are more likely to accept the unknown, such as a new business venture than those low in risk propensity.

What is the Relationship Between Culture and Economics?

The relationship between culture and economic development is drawn from an assessment of the manner in which various cultural traits enhance or hinder economic development. Different cultures exist within different societies, and all of these various cultures have their own peculiarities that make them unique and set them aside from others.

Sometimes these cultural traits may be perceived as benefits from an economic point of view. At other times, other cultural traits may be viewed as a stumbling block to economic development.

An example of the relationship between culture and economic development can be seen in the area of food. Specific cultures have certain types of cuisine that are native to that area. Most times, people from that area may be used to that type of food and less open to other types of food due to cultural beliefs.

For instance, a fast food restaurant in a western country may receive a lot of patronage from the members of that society since fast food like burgers and fries are native to that culture.

The same fast food chain might not be as successful in Asian countries with a cultural preference for rice, noodles and their own native snacks. Some fast food chains make a concession to this cultural trait by including their own version of the native snacks or elements of the native cuisine in their menu to make their food more appealing and acceptable to that population. The same link between culture and economic development can be drawn from the native population’s preference in music as well as literature and even business.

Another example of the link between culture and economic development is that in order to address such issues in an increasingly global world, most countries that display a marked autonomy in their cultural preferences may adapt the foreign concept in such a manner that renders it relevant to their culture.

An example of this is Afro-jazz, which is a fusion of traditional African music and more western jazz music in order to make it more marketable to both African and Western markets. This phenomenon is also seen in the way people from other cultures around the globe copy certain aspects of the American culture such as rap music, manner of dressing, and other purely American factors, and make them work for their culture.

Fusion or integration of cultures help to drive economic growth. This fusion makes the members of various cultures more receptive to the possibility of economic cross-cultural collaborations with those of other cultures. This element of culture and economic growth is relevant in the sense that it also helps facilitate the rate of globalization and trade with other countries.

What are the 4 Factors Affecting the Economy?

Factors of production are resources that are the building blocks of the economy; they are what people use to produce goods and services. Economists divide the factors of production into four categories: land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship.

Land includes any natural resource used to produce goods and services; anything that comes from the land. Some common land or natural resources are water, oil, copper, natural gas, coal, and forests. Land resources are the raw materials in the production process. These resources can be renewable, such as forests, or non-renewables such as oil or natural gas.

Labor is the effort that people contribute to the production of goods and services. Labor resources include the work done by the waiter who brings your food at a local restaurant as well as the engineer who designed the bus that transports you to school. It includes an artist’s creation of a painting as well as the work of the pilot flying the airplane overhead. If you have ever been paid for a job, you have contributed labor resources to the production of goods or services.

Think of capital as the machinery, tools and buildings humans use to produce goods and services. Some common examples of capital include hammers, forklifts, conveyor belts, computers, and delivery vans. Capital differs based on the worker and the type of work being done.

For example, a doctor may use a stethoscope and an examination room to provide medical services. Your teacher may use textbooks, desks, and a whiteboard to produce education services.

What are Socio-Cultural Factors in Economics?

Socio-cultural factors include consumers’ lifestyles, buying habits, education, religion, beliefs, values, demographics, social classes, sexuality and attitudes. These factors determine the suitability of an organization’s products and services for its customers’ needs.

Societies are characterized and differentiated by their sociocultural factors. These characterizing conditions act as social and cultural forces that influence the feelings, attitudes, values, thoughts, beliefs, interactions and behaviors of individual groups.

Sociocultural factors play a vital role in shaping social development and functioning. They are synonymous with the traditions, patterns, and beliefs unique to a community or any other population group. It is important to understand these sociocultural factors to ensure thriving economies and effective governance.

These forces drive decision-making in any given society. Understanding how these forces manifest and operate is key for businesses. Companies seeking to market their brands must demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of basic sociocultural information related to the target group.

People behave and respond to different circumstances, contexts, brands, and policies depending on their sociocultural factors. These drivers influence how people view and perceive the world and other people around them. In a business context, the willingness of a market to purchase a particular product or service depends on sociocultural factors.

For example, Islam forbids the consumption of pork. It would be difficult to establish and successfully run a pork-selling outlet that targets such an Arab-dominated market. Sociocultural factors affect business, economic, political, environmental, and religious outcomes.

Diverse sociocultural factors characterize different communities, geographical areas, and population groups. What is considered normal in one society may be deemed immoral or unusual in another. For example, dressing in bikinis in the Western world is perfectly normal, but in Arab countries this is prohibited among women.

In countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Iran, women are culturally required to cover their entire bodies with the Burqa. Selling bikinis in Middle-Eastern nations would not make much business sense.

Businesses can enhance their effectiveness and chances of success if they align their strategies to the sociocultural factors of the target market.

Sociocultural factors differ from region to region depending on population factors, government policies, traditions, lifestyles, beliefs, and the environment. For instance, people in large urban societies are more likely to experiment with new and exotic dishes than people in small towns and rural areas. A business person planning to establish a Tacos and Tortillas restaurant would be better off targeting large cities than small towns in the countryside.

Other examples of sociocultural factors include:

• Income and wealth distribution
• Social classes
• Attitudes towards education and work,
• Language, customs, and taboos
• Business and health practices
• Housing
• Religious beliefs
• Population size and housing
• Social mobility
• Age distribution and social values

How does Culture Affect the Development of a Country?

The concept of culture has many definitions and interpretations. In social settings, it is often used broadly to represent entire ways of life. Included in such ways of life are rules, values, and expected behaviors. At its most basic level, culture can be seen as the shared product of society. These products have a common meaning that accumulates over time and also reflect shared attachments among community members.

Culture can be seen as consisting of ideas, rules, and material dimensions. Ideas include such things as the values, knowledge, and experience held by a culture. Values are shared ideas and beliefs about what is morally right or wrong, or what is culturally desirable.

Such values are abstract concepts and are often based in religion or culture in that they reflect ideals and visions of what society should be. Such values often shape expected behavior and rules. These rules are accepted ways of doing things and represent guidelines for how people should conduct themselves and how they should act toward others.

Values and rules are often taken for granted and assumed to reflect a common understanding. Both, however, have direct origins and developed in response to conflicts or needs. At the core of such values and norms is a process of interaction that led to their emergence and acceptance. This process shapes the actions of individuals and social systems within their communities.

Culture provides belonging and an arena in which residents can make a difference. At the same time, culture contributes to exclusionary practices and has been seen as a drag on development efforts. Regardless, it is clear that culture plays a critical role in local community action.

Regional or local culture can serve as a basis for development. Such efforts can serve to promote local identity, regional languages, and minority cultures. Efforts can focus on the preservation or promotion of a culture, but can also use culture to mobilize the local population. Examples of cultural preservation or efforts focusing solely on a culture are often seen in relation to tourism and conservation efforts.

Included are renovation of villages (architectural rehabilitation, etc.), highlighting the architectural heritage of an area (restoring historic sites to serve as a focal point for tourists), cultural venues (local heritage centers, traditional cultural events), traditional craft and artistic skills (development of industry and employment based on the production of items which are symbolic of the local culture), and cultural based entertainment and cultural dissemination (organization of cultural activities, festivals, permanent exhibitions).

Equally important is the environmental aspects of culture, where traditional uses of natural resources or events symbolize local cultural ties to environmental processes (solstice festivals, harvest festivals, agriculture progress days).

These efforts serve as a basis for development, but also serve to maintain cultural traditions and ways of life. Furthermore, such forms of development highlight the importance of rural cultures and identify their role in shaping wider society. Finally, through such development, community and cultural identities are reinforced and collective identities strengthened. Such interaction can lead to an improved state of the community and social well-being.

What are the Factors That May Affect Economic Trends?

Learning how these major factors shape trends over the long term can provide insight into how future trends may occur. Here are the four major factors:

Government

The government holds much sway over the free markets. The fiscal and monetary policies that governments and their central banks put in place have a profound effect on the financial marketplace. By increasing and decreasing interest rates, the U.S. Federal Reserve can effectively slow or attempt to speed up growth within the country. This is called monetary policy.

If government spending increases or contracts, this is known as fiscal policy and can be used to help ease unemployment and/or stabilize prices.

By raising or lowering taxes, altering interest rates, and influencing the amount of dollars available on the open market, governments can change how much investment flows into and out of the country.

International Transactions

The flow of funds between countries affects the strength of a country’s economy and its currency. The more money that is leaving a country, the weaker the country’s economy and currency. Countries that predominantly export, whether physical goods or services are continually bringing money into their countries. This money can then be reinvested and can stimulate the financial markets within those countries.

Speculation and Expectation

Speculation and expectation are integral parts of the financial system. Consumers, investors, and politicians all hold different views about where they think the economy will go in the future, and that affects how they act today. The expectation of future action is dependent on current acts and shapes both current and future trends.

Sentiment indicators are commonly used to gauge how certain groups are feeling about the current economy. Analysis of these indicators as well as other forms of fundamental and technical analysis can create a bias or expectation of future price rates and trend direction.

Supply and Demand

Supply and demand for products, services, currencies, and other investments create a push-pull dynamic in prices. Prices and rates change as supply or demand changes. If something is in demand and supply begins to shrink, prices will rise. If supply increases beyond current demand, prices will fall. If supply is relatively stable, prices can fluctuate higher and lower as demand increases or decreases. 

A Mix of Factors

These factors can cause both short- and long-term fluctuations in the market, but it is also important to understand how all these elements come together to create trends. While all of these major factors are categorically different, they are closely linked to one another. Government mandates can affect international transactions, which play a role in speculation, and changes in supply and demand can play a role in each of these other factors.

Government news releases, such as proposed changes in spending or tax policy, as well as Federal Reserve decisions to change or maintain interest rates can also have a dramatic effect on long-term trends. The lowering of interest rates and taxes can encourage spending and economic growth. This in turn has a tendency to push market prices higher. 

However, the market does not always respond in this way because other factors may also be at play. Higher interest rates and taxes, for example, can deter spending and result in a contraction or a long-term fall in market prices.

In the short term, these news releases can cause large price swings as traders and investors buy and sell in response to the information. Increased action around these announcements can create short-term trends, while longer-term trends may develop as investors fully grasp and absorb what the impact of the information means for the markets.

The International Effect

International transactions, the balance of payments between countries, and economic strength are harder to gauge on a daily basis, but they also play a major role in longer-term trends in many markets. The currency markets are a gauge of how well one country’s currency, and by extension, its economy, are doing relative to others. High demand for a currency means that currency will rise relative to other currencies.

The value of a country’s currency can also play a role in how other markets will do within that country. If a country’s currency is weak, this will deter investment into that country, as potential profits will be eroded by the weak currency. 

The Participant Effect

The analysis and resultant positions taken by traders and investors based on the information they receive about government policy and international transactions create speculation as to where prices will move. When enough people agree on one direction, the market enters into a trend that could sustain itself for many years.

Trends are also perpetuated by market participants who were wrong in their analysis. When they are forced to exit their losing trades, it pushes prices further in the current direction. As more investors climb aboard to profit from a trend, the market becomes saturated and the trend reverses, at least temporarily. 

The Supply and Demand Effect

Supply and demand affect individuals, companies, and the financial markets as a whole. In some markets, such as commodities, supply is determined by a physical product. Supply and demand for oil are constantly changing, adjusting the price a market participant is willing to pay for oil today and in the future.

As supply dwindles or demand increases, a long-term rise in oil prices can occur as market participants outbid one another to attain a seemingly finite supply of the commodity. Suppliers want a higher price for what they have and higher demand pushes the price that buyers are willing to pay.

The financial markets have a similar dynamic. Stocks fluctuate on a short and long-term scale, creating trends. The threat of supply drying up at current prices forces buyers to buy at higher and higher prices, creating large price increases. If a large group of sellers was to enter the market, this would increase the supply of stock available and would likely push prices lower. This occurs in all time frames. 

What are the 6 Characteristics that Affect Economic Growth?

Economic growth is one of the most important indicators of a healthy economy. One of the biggest impacts of the long-term growth of a country is that it has a positive impact on national income and the level of employment, which increases the standard of living. As the country’s GDP is increasing, it is more productive which leads to more people being employed. This increases the wealth of the country and its population.

Higher economic growth also leads to extra tax income for government spending, which the government can use to develop the economy. This expansion can also be used to reduce the budget deficit.

Additionally, as the population of a country grows, it requires growth to keep up its standard of living and wealth.

Economic growth also helps improve the standards of living and reduce poverty, but these improvements cannot occur without economic development. Economic growth alone cannot eliminate poverty on its own.

The following six causes of economic growth are key components in an economy. Improving or increasing their quantity can lead to growth in the economy.

1. Natural Resources

The discovery of more natural resources like oil, or mineral deposits may boost economic growth as this shifts or increases the country’s Production Possibility Curve. Other resources include land, water, forests and natural gas.

Realistically, it is difficult, if not impossible, to increase the number of natural resources in a country. Countries must take care to balance the supply and demand for scarce natural resources to avoid depleting them. Improved land management may improve the quality of land and contribute to economic growth.

For example, Saudi Arabia’s economy has historically been dependent on its oil deposits.

2. Physical Capital or Infrastructure

Increased investment in physical capital, such as factories, machinery, and roads, will lower the cost of economic activity. Better factories and machinery are more productive than physical labor. This higher productivity can increase output. For example, having a robust highway system can reduce inefficiencies in moving raw materials or goods across the country, which can increase its GDP.

3. Population or Labor

A growing population means there is an increase in the availability of workers or employees, which means a higher workforce. One downside of having a large population is that it could lead to high unemployment.

4. Human Capital

An increase in investment in human capital can improve the quality of the labor force. This increase in quality would result in an improvement in skills, abilities, and training. A skilled labor force has a significant effect on growth since skilled workers are more productive. For example, investing in STEM students or subsidizing coding academies would increase the availability of workers for higher-skilled jobs that pay more than investing in blue-collar jobs.

5. Technology

Another influential factor is the improvement of technology. The technology could increase productivity with the same levels of labor, thus accelerating growth and development. This increment means factories can be more productive at lower costs. Technology is most likely to lead to sustained long-run growth.

6. Law

An institutional framework that regulates economic activity such as rules and laws. There is no specific set of institutions that promote growth.

What are the Social and Economic Benefits of Culture?

Participating in culture can benefit individuals in many different ways, some of which are deeply personal. They are a source of delight and wonder and can provide emotionally and intellectually moving experiences, whether pleasurable or unsettling, that encourage celebration or contemplation. Culture is also a means of expressing creativity, forging an individual identity, and enhancing or preserving a community’s sense of place.

Cultural experiences are opportunities for leisure, entertainment, learning, and sharing experiences with others. From museums to theatres to dance studios to public libraries, culture brings people together. These benefits are intrinsic to culture. They are what attracts us and why we participate.

Improved learning and valuable skills for the future

In children and youth, participation in culture helps develop thinking skills, builds self-esteem, and improves resilience, all of which enhance educational outcomes. For example, students from low-income families who take part in arts activities at school are three times more likely to get a degree than those who do not. In the US, schools that integrate arts across the curriculum have shown consistently higher average reading and mathematics scores compared with similar schools that do not. Many jurisdictions make strong linkages between culture and literacy and enhanced learning outcomes, in both public education and in the development of valuable workforce skills.

Cultural heritage broadens opportunities for education and lifelong learning, including a better understanding of history. Ontario’s cultural heritage sector develops educational products and learning resources in museums and is designed around built heritage and cultural landscapes.

As trusted community hubs and centers of knowledge and information, public libraries play an important role in expanding educational opportunities and literacy, overcoming the digital divide, supporting lifelong learning, and preparing people for work in the knowledge economy. Participation in library activities has been shown to improve literacy and increase cognitive abilities.

E-learning is on the rise in both academic and professional settings. Games are being used to enhance math, writing, and other academic skills, and to motivate employees. There are over 120 specialized e-learning companies in Ontario.

Better health and well-being

Participation in culture contributes to healthy populations in several ways. Creativity and cultural engagement have been shown to improve both mental and physical health. Culture is being integrated into health care, notably in the UK, but also increasingly in other jurisdictions, including Canada.

A growing body of research also demonstrates that the arts can improve the health and well-being of older adults. Participation in the arts can relieve isolation and promote identity formation and intercultural understanding. Vancouver’s Arts, Health and Seniors Project found that active participation in the arts had positive health benefits, such as social cohesion and emotional and physical well-being. Both the perceived health and chronic pain measures showed improvement over time.

In First Nation, Métis and Inuit communities, culture is “simultaneously art, creative expression, religious practice, ritual models and markers of governance structures and territorial heritage, as well as maps of individual and community identity and lineage.” The link between past efforts to eradicate Indigenous cultures and health issues in today’s Indigenous communities is increasingly recognized. Research has shown that the revitalization of Indigenous cultures plays a key role in supporting the health, well-being, and healing of individuals and communities.

Vibrant communities

The benefits of culture for individuals can spill over to society as a whole. Culture helps build social capital, the glue that holds communities together. By bringing people together, cultural activities such as festivals, fairs, or classes create social solidarity and cohesion, fostering social inclusion, community empowerment, and capacity-building, and enhancing confidence, civic pride, and tolerance. The social capital created through culture increases with regular participation in cultural activities. Cultural engagement also plays a key role in poverty reduction and communities-at-risk strategies.

Culture is important to the vitality of all communities. Research in the US has shown direct connections between culture and community revitalization in Chicago neighborhoods. Social networks created through arts initiatives based in the community resulted in direct economic benefits for the neighborhood, such as new uses of existing facilities, and new jobs for local artist.

Our diverse cultural heritage resources tell the story of our shared past, fostering social cohesion. They are intrinsic to our sense of place. Investments in heritage streetscapes have been shown to have a positive impact on the sense of place. Benefits include improved quality of life for local residents, a feeling of pride, identification with the past, and a sense of belonging to a wider community.

Culture helps cities to develop compelling city narratives and distinctive brands, with unique selling points for tourists and business investors. Culturally rich districts also enhance competitiveness by attracting talent and businesses. Cultural heritage is also a factor in rural development, supporting tourism, community renewal, and farmstead conservation.

The culture sector helps support the economy through direct and indirect job creation. It also helps spur innovation in other sectors in the form of productivity advancements, regional development, community branding, and increased local tourism.

Contribution to job creation

Economic opportunities created by culture have taken on greater importance as economies transition from the industrial model, and work based on physical labor, to a new model in which knowledge and creativity drive productivity and growth. Knowledge-based economies favor ideas to stimulate innovation, and they develop specialized services and highly customized products to create value. Information, technology, and learning are central to their performance.

The culture sector is the foundation for Ontario’s growing creative economy sector. In 2010, culture contributed nearly $22 billion to Ontario’s GDP, representing 3.7% of the province’s economy. There were about 280,000 culture jobs in Ontario in 2010, or 4.1% of all jobs in the province. Almost half of all culture jobs in Canada were located in Ontario as of 2010.

Interactive Digital Media (IDM) is poised to be a key driver of growth and employment in Ontario’s cultural industries and the overall economy as cultural media products such as games and interactive experiences become more prevalent. According to the most recent Canadian Interactive Industry Profile, nearly one-third of the “core” IDM industry, specifically companies engaged mainly in content creation, were located in Ontario. They contributed estimated revenues of $1.1 billion in 2011 and accounted for over 17,000 jobs.

Ontario is the number one film and television production jurisdiction in Canada in terms of production volume, revenue and employment; and the third-largest film production location in North America after California and New York. Film and television production contributed $2.3 billion in expenditures in Ontario (accounting for 40% of the national total) and supported 44,410 direct and indirect jobs in 2013-2014. Film and television productions supported by the province contributed $1.3 billion in expenditures, supporting over 28,000 full-time direct and spin-off jobs in 2014.

With leading computer animation, visual effects, and post-production facilities engaged in cutting-edge innovation, and a strong network of training and research centers such as the Canadian Film Centre and the Screen Industries Training Centre located at Pinewood Studios, Ontario is positioned to remain one of the leading centers of film and television production and post-production in North America.

Contribution to tourism

Culture makes a significant contribution to the tourism industry in Ontario, further supporting job creation and encouraging infrastructure development. In 2010, cultural tourism generated $3.7 billion in GDP and resulted in 67,700 jobs for Ontarians.

The many festivals and events hosted each year in every corner of Ontario, coupled with the province’s museums, art galleries, and historic sites, are magnets for cultural tourists. Almost 90% of the 21 million North Americans who visited Ontario among other destinations over a two-year period sought out a cultural activity on their visit. Of visitors from outside the province who stayed at least one night (1.3 million visitors), 25% attended festivals and sporting events.

There are significant opportunities to grow cultural tourism through marketing cultural heritage assets. Historic sites in Ontario had over 3.7 million visits in 2011, placing built heritage in the top five most popular tourist attractions in the province.

Music tourism offers Canadian artists a means of showcasing their talents and promoting their work. Local music scenes can help brand communities to attract tourists from Ontario and around the world. Three-quarters of those who attended the Jazz on the Mountain at Blue in 2013, hosted by the town of Blue Mountain Village, traveled from over 100 kilometers away. In Ottawa, almost 12,000 traveled over 40 kilometers to attend the Ottawa Folk Festival in 2014. In that year, the Folk Festival drew an audience of over 54,000, up from only 2,500 in 2010.

Cultural planning

Increasingly, municipalities are recognizing the contribution of culture to sense of place, quality of life, and community and economic prosperity through a process called “cultural planning.” Cultural planning is led by local governments and involves broad community engagement to identify and leverage a community’s cultural resources, strengthen the management of those resources, and integrate them in all facets of local planning and decision-making.

The process is part of a global trend toward more place-based approaches to planning and development that take into account four interdependent pillars of community sustainability: economic prosperity, social equity, environmental responsibility, and cultural vitality. Cultural planning helps create the environment for culture to flourish.

To date, 69 municipalities, representing nearly three-quarters of Ontario’s population, have developed cultural plans and engaged in cultural mapping exercises to identify their unique and valued cultural resources. Maps can include cultural resources both tangible (e.g., cultural workers, spaces and facilities, cultural heritage and natural heritage resources) and intangible (e.g., stories and activities) that reflect the distinct cultural identity of the community.

Cultural plans have contributed to downtown, waterfront, and neighborhood revitalization. They complement economic development and community growth plans, as well as tourism and population retention strategies, and expand opportunities for youth.

For example, St. Catharines’s 2015 cultural plan strongly positions culture as a key economic driver, crucial to combat the loss of manufacturing jobs. It also positions culture as a source of new business, youth retention, and a means of revitalizing downtown St. Catharines.

What are Examples of Cultural Impacts?

Tourism may or may not create some form of sociocultural impact because it is, by nature, about bringing people from one culture and background to interact temporarily with those of others.

These differences include aspects such as language, religious beliefs, traditions, customs, lifestyles, behavioral patterns; dress codes; the sense of time, budgeting, and attitudes toward strangers. These differences can range from minor, when we deal with domestic tourism, to sign in the case of international tourism.

‘Social impacts’ is the term that describes the changes in the quality of life of the local residents of tourist destinations with interactions between tourists and the local residents lying at its heart. Changes that affect individuals’ surroundings (architecture, arts, customs, rituals etc.) owing to influxes of tourists constitute cultural impacts. The enormous range of impacts includes arts and crafts through to the fundamental behavior and beliefs of individuals and collective groups (Sharpley, 2008; Sharpley & Telfer, 2014).

Socio-cultural impacts can be approached from four different but overlapping viewpoints:

• Tourism impact studies
  • This emphasizes the inextricable links between this and other types of impacts, ie economic and environmental.
• Host–guest interaction
  • This looks at the sociological and psychological changes which take place throughout and following the interactions between tourists and different destination communities.
• Tourist systems
  • This refers to the production side of tourism, which may be structured in a way that reduces negative impacts e.g. isolated facilities available for tourists which may reduce exposure to behavior deemed negative by residents.
• Tourists and their behavior (typologies)
  • This focuses on the needs and wants of tourists and the extent to which they consider those of destination communities, i.e. adapting or disturbing their local norms.

What are the 10 Economic Factors?

The following are the top 10 economic factors that affect the business:

1. Interest Rate

Interest rate is a major factor that affects the liquidity of cash in the economy. With an increase in investment, cash flow in the country decreases and results in a reduction in the country’s liquidity. Conversely, a decrease in investment cash flow in the country increases and increases the country’s liquidity.

Read Also: Business Differences in Developing Countries

A higher return on investment will attract investors. But, if the interest rate on loans increases, cash flow in the country decreases, resulting in a decrease in the nation’s liquidity. In contrast, with the decline in interest rate over a loan, cash flow in the country increases and increases the country’s liquidity. So, the interest rate affects the economy.

2. Exchange Rate

The exchange rate comes into the picture in the case of export and import. Due to this, it affects international payment and the price of goods, affecting the economy.

3. Tax Rate

The tax rate is a crucial part of the economy. The tax rate affects the price of goods and their sales, affecting the economy.

4. Inflation

The increase in the demand price of goods or services increases inflation and money supply.

5. Labor

Labour and cost or wage are always the important economic factors affecting the economy. As a result, many countries have started outsourcing labor from other countries. The company begins its plant or production where labor is cheap.

6. Demand / Supply

Demand or supply of goods or services affects the economy as with the increase in demand price of goods or service increase, which results in inflation. With inflation, the money reserve in the economy increases with the rise in the supply of goods or services. The price of the same decreases. Demand and supply depend on each other.

7. Wages

Wages paid to labor or employee are a direct cost to the company added to the cost of goods or services through which it affects the economy. Another way wages affect the economy is by increasing wages, consuming power, and improving consumer spending.

8. Law and Policies

With change or modification in the law, the economy of the country changes. For example, if the government makes a law that should ban liquor in the country, it will affect companies dealing with it, their employees, and shopkeepers, which affects the economy at a broad level. Similarly, any policy made by the government will affect the economy.

9. Government Activity

Government activity also affects the economy. So, for example, if the government promotes any industry like insurance or medicine or technology, it will encourage that sector that boosts its economy, overall supporting it.

10. Recession

A recession affects consumers’ purchasing power, forcing companies to drop their goods or services.

So, we can see how the above economic factors affect the economy.

Many other economic factors like unemployment, market, land, capital, science, and technology affect the economy. However, for the proper functioning of the country, the economy needs to be stable. At a macro level, one can see that with regular business with competitive earnings.