Exploring Occupational and Career Implications of Human Capital Specificity:
A Fine Arts Case Study
A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters by Research
Tyler Gordon McDonald
BFA, B.Ed
School of Economics Finance and Marketing
College of Business
RMIT University
December 2015
Declaration
I certify that except where due acknowledgement has been made, the work is that of the author
alone; the work has not been submitted previously, in whole or in part, to qualify for any other
academic award; the content of the thesis is the result of work which has been carried out since
the official commencement date of the approved research program; any editorial work, paid or
unpaid, carried out by a third party is acknowledged; and, ethics procedures and guidelines have
been followed.
Tyler Gordon McDonald
December 2015
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Acknowledgements
I am grateful to my parents for instilling in me the drive and work ethic needed to complete this thesis. I am especially
grateful to Katherine, who inspired me to write this thesis.
The research described herein was conducted under the supervision of Associate Professor Jonathon Boymal (senior)
and Dr. Bronwyn Coate of the School of Economics, Finance and Marketing at RMIT University. I’d like to thank Jonathan
and Bronwyn for their patience, guidance, encouragement and limited time.
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Abstract
It has been suggested that at the heart of a degree in fine arts is a curriculum that gives students the freedom to
experiment, develop their problem-solving skills, creative faculties, and the ability to conceptualize. With this in mind it
stands to reason that an individual with a fine arts education should be succeeding in a knowledge-based economy that
values creativity for economic growth. However, contemporary data in Australia shows that individuals holding tertiary
degrees in fine arts rate the lowest in terms of employment gained relative to other degree holders and have a negative
monetary rate of return.
While the aforementioned statistics are important, ex post data does not tell the full story. Treating an investment in
education as a choice made under uncertainty, particularly in light of the differences between specific and general human
capital, provides a more complete picture of the ex ante gains from undertaking a fine arts degree. This research maps
the professional lifecycle of fine arts graduates living in Melbourne, Australia in order to examine the trade-off between
higher productivity and flexibility in the labor market.
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................... 6
1.1 Portfolio Careers ................................................................................................................... 7
1.2 Statement of the Problem ..................................................................................................... 7
1.3 Objective and Focus of the Study ......................................................................................... 8
1.4 Research Questions .............................................................................................................. 9
1.5 Conceptual Framework ......................................................................................................... 9
1.5.1 Human Capital Theory and the Rise of the Knowledge-Based Economy ....................... 10
1.5.2 The Folly of Prediction ..................................................................................................... 10
1.5.3 Investing in Human Capital under Uncertainty ................................................................. 10
1.5.4 Importance of Flexibility in Today’s Labor Market ............................................................ 11
1.6 The Relevance of Returns to Artistic Practice .................................................................... 11
1.7 Overview of the Thesis ........................................................................................................ 12
1.8 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 13
Chapter 2. Literature Review ........................................................................................................ 14
2.1 The Role of Higher Education in the Knowledge Economy ................................................ 14
2.2 The ex post Returns to Completing a Higher Education Qualification ................................ 15
2.3 The Impact that the Field of Education has on the Ex post Returns ................................... 16
2.4 The Fine Arts Choice .......................................................................................................... 18
2.4.1 Art’s High Status and the Formation of Cultural Capital .................................................. 18
2.4.2 Non-monetary Rewards and the Work Preference Model ............................................... 19
2.4.3 Artists are Intrinsically Motivated ...................................................................................... 20
2.5 The Uncertainty of the Educational Investment .................................................................. 21
2.6 Human Capital Theory ........................................................................................................ 22
2.7 The Creative Class .............................................................................................................. 23
2.8 The Multigenerational, Retrospective Nature of the Study ................................................. 25
2.9 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 25
Chapter 3. Methodology ............................................................................................................... 26
3.1 Ethical Considerations ........................................................................................................ 27
3.2 Sourcing the Primary Data .................................................................................................. 27
3.3 Broad Data Description ....................................................................................................... 29
3.4 Methodological Approach .................................................................................................... 29
3.5 Data Analysis ...................................................................................................................... 31
3.6 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 31
Chapter 4. Quantitative Results .................................................................................................... 32
4.1 Demographics ..................................................................................................................... 32
4.2 Education ............................................................................................................................ 33
4.3 Likelihood of Completing the Fine Arts Course ................................................................... 33
4.4 Prior Education .................................................................................................................... 34
4.5 Further Education ................................................................................................................ 34
4.6 Current Education ............................................................................................................... 35
4.7 Artistic Career Progression ................................................................................................. 35
4.8 Artistic Aspirations ............................................................................................................... 36
4.9 Factors Inhibiting Artists’ Careers ....................................................................................... 37
4.10 Income ............................................................................................................................... 38
4.11 Income from Creative Practice .......................................................................................... 38
4.12 Expectations of Earning Income from Creative Practice................................................... 39
4.13 Employment ...................................................................................................................... 39
4.14 Primary Occupational Sectors ........................................................................................... 40
4.15 Primary Occupation Fine Arts Related .............................................................................. 40
4.16 Secondary Employment .................................................................................................... 40
4.17 Secondary Occupation Fine Arts Related ......................................................................... 41
4.18 Human Capital Accumulation ............................................................................................ 41