Dr Amanda E Krause is interested in the social and applied psychology of music. Her research interests include everyday music experiences, with an emphasis on the relationships between listening and well-being. Dr Krause holds a PhD in Psychology (awarded 2014) and currently works as a Lecturer (Psychology) at James Cook University.
This study uses identity process theory to understand the social-psychological processes that mot... more This study uses identity process theory to understand the social-psychological processes that motivate individuals to construct an identity in which music, singing, and singing teaching feature prominently. We conducted reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 10 Australian singing teachers (with an average age 60) to understand how they enacted identity principles that motivate identity construction and maintenance. Findings were captured in two themes: (1) 'It has just been music': Living a musical life is my destiny; (2) 'I know my value': Achieving goals in music and teaching is motivating. Participants' consistent musical engagement across the lifespan satisfied the identity principles of continuity and positive distinctiveness. The identity principles of self-efficacy and self-esteem were satisfied through the social connections created with peers and through teaching singing; participants derived self-worth from celebrating and contributing to the success of others. Teaching singing was a way to become 'singular', that is, distinctive, and distinctively valued by the self and others. This article provides an example of how identity process theory can be applied in musical identities research to uncover new insights into the psychological processes of identity construction, with implications for understanding identity resilience and musical engagement across the lifespan.
Objective: The unique circumstances of COVID-19 have raised questions of best practices for how t... more Objective: The unique circumstances of COVID-19 have raised questions of best practices for how to teach statistics virtually. The present study evaluated which characteristics of statistics learning activities in the virtual environment increase undergraduate psychology students' (a) engagement, (b) satisfaction, and (c) knowledge of statistics. Method: Semi-structured focus groups (N = 13 participants, aged 21-58, 64.3% female, 28.6% male, 7.1% gender fluid) were conducted. The focus group conversations were transcribed and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results: The findings indicate three main themes: catering to/supporting external students, why learning statistics online does not work, and how to make teaching and learning statistics online work. Social norms that prioritise time efficiency over engagement and interaction mean that the immediacy of learning and engaging with an instructor is often lost virtually. Suggestions for how to improve teaching and learning statistics online centred on readily accessible content, statistical software access, a teaching delivery that is methodical and flexible, immediacy of instructor response, and prioritising student-student and studentinstructor connection. Conclusion: These findings illustrate key challenges specific to teaching and learning statistics virtually, with real implications for how to better design and implement related curriculum.
Although research literacy is necessary for the competent delivery of psychological services, man... more Although research literacy is necessary for the competent delivery of psychological services, many psychology students hold negative attitudes toward research subjects. The current study explored undergraduate students' perceptions of research subjects relative to nonresearch subjects. A sample of 249 Australian (45.4%) and Singaporean (54.6%) first-year university students (M age = 21.27, SD age = 5.14, females = 75.9%) indicated their interest in, and perceived value of, 32 psychology subjects (based on title and a short description). They also nominated their most/least interested and valued subject and provided a free-text explanation for their selections. Participants perceived research subjects as significantly less interesting and valuable relative to nonresearch subjects (d values were indicative of a large difference for interest and a small-to-medium different for value). Cluster analysis indicated that research subjects are seen as distinct, forming their own cluster. This finding was supported by thematic analysis of participants' open-ended responses. Students considered research subjects to be especially difficult, requiring skills they did not possess or enjoy using (e.g., mathematics), and lacking relevance to their future studies and intended careers. The findings suggest that research methods instructors should aim to emphasize the relevance of research to practice in high interest areas (e.g., psychopathology).
A recent examination of charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVI... more A recent examination of charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic indicated that popular music lyrics during turbulent socioeconomic conditions had more negatively valenced words, providing support for the Environmental Security Hypothesis. However, the use of chart data alone cannot speak to what individuals are listening to against the backdrop of COVID-19. The present mixed-methods case study examined a crowdsourced playlist (n = 55 songs) created by Australian residents during an extended lockdown in September-October 2021. Qualitative analysis of the lyrics demonstrated that the selected music expresses a closeness to others, references to the current situation (such as illness and staying at home), negative emotions (including confusion and fear), a positive outlook (expressing perseverance and a will to survive), and a changing sense of time. Quantitative analyses compared the "pandemic playlist" songs to charting songs during the first six months of the pandemic in 2020 and the same period in 2021 (n = 28 and 26 songs, respectively) with regard to their musical features (using scraped Spotify API data) and lyrical content (using Diction). The findings indicated that the songs included in the "pandemic playlist" differed significantly from the charting songs in 2020 and 2021 by being higher in energy (relative to 2020 and 2021) and less acoustic (relative to 2021). Additionally, the lyrics of the "pandemic playlist" songs had significantly more positively valenced words. These differences suggest that people believed music selected in response to the pandemic ought to be upbeat and realistic (playlist suggestions), but popular songs were relatively pensive and reflected uncertainty and isolation (chart data). These findings broaden our understanding of music listening behaviors in response to societal stress.
Practice is essential to the acquisition and development of musical skills, requiring musicians' ... more Practice is essential to the acquisition and development of musical skills, requiring musicians' time, investment, application, motivation, metacognitive strategies, and ability to self-regulate. Research in children's music practice indicates the type, quality, and duration of practice, along with adult support, contributes to fluency in musical development; and when progress occurs, children invest in further practice. However, nuances in children's lived experiences of musical practice that influence these critical factors are largely unknown. To understand the complex issues in children's practice, this study employed a unique pairing of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis and Participatory Action Research to investigate 14 seven-year-old beginner cellists' practice during early learning and explored how their thoughts and experiences evolved over the first 18 months of lessons. Providing rare insight into children's perceptions of musical development and the vital role of parents and teachers in nurturing engagement, three superordinate themes emerged: (a) four approaches to practice, characterized by practice structure, learner behavior, and family support, (b) a three-phase practice process, and (c) perfection ideation. Positive experiences, including creative activities, within these thematic contexts fostered children's enjoyment in early musical development, supported productive learning interactions, and sustained engagement. Together, the findings have meaningful pedagogical implications for instrumental music teaching practice.
Today, most everyday music listening is an accompaniment to other activities; it is far less comm... more Today, most everyday music listening is an accompaniment to other activities; it is far less common that listening is someone’s primary activity, receiving most of their attention. In this article, we present a case study, Listen Up, run by Indigo Project, a mental health organization in Sydney, Australia, in which we explored relationships between participants’ responses to the experience and their demographics and styles of music engagement. A sample of 187 Australian residents (aged 20–64years) who attended Listen Up completed a survey measuring music engagement; emotional responses to the experience; perceived outcomes of the session; pre- and post-measures of stress, mood, and anxiety; and free-text responses to questions concerning their experiences of listening mindfully and any thoughts or feelings that arose during the session. Participants experienced an increased mood and decreased levels of stress and arousal after taking part in Listen Up. Their focused-listening experiences were not simply characterized by enjoying the music; rather, the emotions evoked were varied and complex. We characterized their emotional responses as negative, positive, evocative and expressive, and sad; in addition, participants characterized their own experiences as a cathartic journey resolving into a positive, peaceful, and calm state. Reported outcomes of participating in Listen Up included experiences described as being emotionally challenging, therapeutic, and physically uncomfortable. An affective music engagement style was positively associated with evocative and expressive and sad emotional experiences, and therapeutic outcomes. As a focused listening experience, Listen Up provides participants with the opportunity not only to attend to music but also to reflect on and process their personal thoughts and feelings. This research provides evidence for the emotional and mental health benefits of focused music listening, such that, focused listening reflects opportunities for strong experiences with music in today’s listening landscape.
Professional musicians with strong identities in music may also have a high degree of music in th... more Professional musicians with strong identities in music may also have a high degree of music in their identities. Accordingly, a rigid identification with work may be problematic for musicians, particularly when forces beyond their control change their work circumstances. In this study we conducted semi-structured interviews with 10 singing teachers, representing a subset of professional musicians, and used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to explore the ways in which they enacted music in their identities. The framework of musical identities in action was used to interpret the findings, revealing the dynamic, embodied, and situated complexity of music in participants' identities. Music had existential salience in the accounts of nine participants. Its salience resulted from the dynamic and situated presence of music across the lifespan, the literal embodiment of the singing voice, and the metaphorical embodiment of the presence of music in participants' experiences. While a strong sense of music in people's identities can promote lifelong engagement with music, if the emphasis on music is existential, the identity of a professional musician may be at risk when they are faced with an external threat to their livelihood. This is important knowledge for music educators and professional musicians' career thinking.
In Australia today, radio continues to draw large audiences, with high engagement among older adu... more In Australia today, radio continues to draw large audiences, with high engagement among older adults. This research investigated how radio personnel and listeners regard the purpose of radio, and further how engaging with radio is perceived to influence listener wellbeing. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with radio personnel (N = 16) and focus groups with older adult listeners (N = 32) suggest that the purpose of radio is to stay informed (e.g., news and information), for entertainment (e.g., music), and for perceived social purposes (e.g., communion, social connection, company, and companionship). Findings indicate there are implicit and explicit ways in which radio facilitates the wellbeing of their listenership. Explicitly, radio promotes mental health through broadcasts and programming, as well as exploiting the medium of radio as a public service for the community to call and rely on. Participants implicitly indicated that radio acts as a surrogate friend in their home; someone to keep them company and encourage connection to their greater community. Broadly, perceived relationships with radio programs and individual presenters, built and sustained over time through repeating listening, underpin the radio's ability to support listener wellbeing. These findings have implications for broadcasting practices as well as future work concerning how the radio might be used as a widely accessible tool for promoting quality of older life.
Empathy enables successful communication and connection between teachers and their students, yet ... more Empathy enables successful communication and connection between teachers and their students, yet few studies have investigated its specific use in teaching singing. Addressing this gap, we interviewed voice teachers to discover how they articulate their pedagogy in terms of empathic practices and observed one-to-one lessons for evidence of the same. A sample of 27 classical and music theatre voice teachers in Australia (70% females, 30% males), aged 35-75 years old (M = 55) were interviewed. Of this cohort, seven teachers were observed in their one-to-one teaching practices. Interviews and observations were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Results indicated that voice teachers tailor their practices to the needs of students and demonstrate characteristics of teacher empathy identified in previous literature: effective communication, positive relationships, care, learning environment, trust, morality, and listening. Empathic teaching facilitates an individualised approach in which singing students are supported and motivated in their own autonomous learning environment. These findings have implications for voice pedagogy that features the use of empathy to benefit of future students.
We examine associations between prevailing weather conditions and music features in all available... more We examine associations between prevailing weather conditions and music features in all available songs that reached the United Kingdom weekly top charts throughout a 67-year period (1953-2019), comprising 23 859 unique entries. We found that music features reflecting high intensity and positive emotions were positively associated with daily temperatures and negatively associated with rainfall, whereas music features reflecting low intensity and negative emotions were not related to weather conditions. These results held true after controlling for the mediating effects of year (temporal patterns) and month (seasonal patterns). However, music-weather associations were more nuanced than previously assumed by linear models, becoming only meaningful in those months and seasons when changes in weather were the most notable. Importantly, the observed associations depended on the popularity of the music: while songs in the top 10 of the charts exhibited the strongest associations with weather, less popular songs showed no relationship. This suggests that a song's fit with prevailing weather may be a factor pushing a song into the top of the charts. Our work extends previous research on non-musical domains (e.g. finance, crime, mental health) by showing that large-scale population-level preferences for cultural phenomena (music) are also influenced by broad environmental factors that exist over long periods of time (weather) via mood-regulation mechanisms. We discuss these results in terms of the limited nature of correlational studies and cross-cultural generalizability.
International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology, 2023
In this study, we sought to develop-and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived ... more In this study, we sought to develop-and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived from-a new Psychological Flow Scale (PFS). We propose a parsimonious model of three core dimensions of flow, reflecting the findings from a recent scoping review that synthesised flow research across scientific disciplines. The validation process for the PFS addressed recent conceptual criticisms of flow science regarding construct validity, theoretical compatibility, relational ambiguity, and definitional inconsistency. An initial review and analysis of the many flow measurements that exist found that these instruments either assess one, some, or none of the three core-dimensions of flow; often measuring similar dimensions that may bear resemblance to one of the three-dimensions but differ in dimensional meaning. PFS item development involved a phase of theoretical scrutiny, review of existing instruments, item generation, and expert review of items. Subsequently, 936 participants were recruited for scale development purposes, which included sample testing, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. This factor analytic process showed evidence for three distinguishable dimensions 'under' a single general or higher-order factor (i.e., global flow). With respect to external aspects of validity, flow scores correlated positively with perceptions of competence, self-rated performance, autotelic personality, and negatively with anxiety and stress scores. In conclusion, we present preliminary evidence for the theoretical and operational Public Significance Statement This article presents evidence of validity for a new Psychological Flow Scale (PFS) that assesses the core aspects of the flow state, and has been designed to be utilized across domains and scientific disciplines. Confirmatory findings suggest that the response scale is a suitable fit to assess flow globally, whilst the dimensions of absorption, effortless control, and intrinsic reward can be assessed by the three subscales. Flow scores correlated positively with perceptions of competence, self-rated performance, autotelic personality; and correlated negatively with anxiety and stress. The article offers suggestions regarding important aspects of flow measurement.
While studies have defined voice teacher expertise, seldom have associations been made between vo... more While studies have defined voice teacher expertise, seldom have associations been made between voice teachers and their students’ performing achievements. This study investigated which characteristics and attributes of successful classical and music theatre voice teachers influence student success. A sample of 123 Australian voice teachers (77% females, 22% males, 1% non-binary), aged 26-78 years old (M=48.23), completed an online, quantitative survey examining teacher background, experience, and genre. Additionally, standardised, quantitative measures examined psychological components such as teacher empathy and leadership. Findings demonstrated statistically significant associations between greater student achievement and the teacher’s own performance and teacher training and achievements as well as the number of students they have taught. Additionally, teacher leadership, specifically training facilitation and positive feedback, was statistically positively associated with student achievement. Teacher genre was not found to influence student success. These findings indicate that incorporating leadership training into voice pedagogy courses, while facilitating ongoing performing and professional development, could contribute to voice teacher expertise which would conceivably produce more successful students.
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 2023
Statistical literacy, one of the core skills embedded in tertiary psychology education, is best t... more Statistical literacy, one of the core skills embedded in tertiary psychology education, is best taught using active learning pedagogy. Although a plethora of research has examined how the implementation of emergency online learning (EOL) in response to COVID-19 impacted teaching and learning in general, limited research has considered how this change affected tertiary teaching of psychology statistics specifically. We conducted an exploratory, two-phase, mixed-method study to consider how the implementation of EOL during COVID-19 impacted the teaching of research methods and statistics at tertiary institutions in Australia. A sample of 21 tertiary educators in Australia (52% females, 48% males), aged 26–55 (M = 39.75) completed an online survey, which included quantitative and qualitative items addressing experiences with online teaching and COVID-19 EOL. Of this cohort, we interviewed three educators about their experience in teaching statistics; changes in teaching conditions from 2019 to the present; challenges and advantages of EOL; and student satisfaction, engagement, and performance. Overall, we found that previous experience with online learning was a better indicator of success in EOL than years of teaching in general. Educators also felt underprepared and under-resourced from their institutions. Many challenges of EOL were identified, with access to statistical software being the key challenge unique to teaching statistics. Overcoming technological inequities was recommended to improve EOL outcomes in the future.
Community language radio is known to provide information and social connection for community memb... more Community language radio is known to provide information and social connection for community members. This article examines the role of community language radio in Australia during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Drawing on data from interviews with four presenters at a community language radio station in Melbourne, this case study explores the station’s operation during the pandemic and presenter perceptions of the station’s contributions to supporting listeners’ well-being. To situate our study more globally, the case study was preceded by an examination of press reporting on the role of radio during the pandemic. Overall, our findings indicate that community language radio has played a vital role in promoting listener well-being by communicating information about COVID-19 and by providing a sense of comfort, entertainment and companionship through regular broadcasting. Results are discussed considering crisis communication and resilience theory to highlight the vital role community language radio plays for migrant communities during crises.
Several studies show that a concept or object is more popular when it is easier to process. The p... more Several studies show that a concept or object is more popular when it is easier to process. The present research applies this notion of processing fluency to the lyrics of all 271 top 5 songs on the United Kingdom chart for each week from 1999 to 2014. The processing fluency of the lyrics was computer scored for readability, presence of rhyme, and complexity, and popularity was assessed in terms of peak chart position and duration of tenure on the chart. After controlling for the energy of the musical component of the song, analyses showed that factors relating to the processing fluency of the lyrics predicted peak popularity but not duration of chart tenure. Significant relationships were observed between peak popularity and both rhyme saturation and basic lyric readability properties.
Here we present a dialogue between ourselves – Dr Amanda Krause and Dr Steven Brown, two music ps... more Here we present a dialogue between ourselves – Dr Amanda Krause and Dr Steven Brown, two music psychology researchers, with expertise in people’s everyday music listening behaviours. Through conversation, we reflect on and compare our personal music listening practices. In particular, our dialogue focuses on the impact the digital revolution had on our use of emerging digital listening technologies (specifically mobile devices, playlists, and shuffle), how our practices have developed over time, and how these practices have been negotiated due to our research studies and findings. For instance, Dr Krause recounts how she became driven to listen to her entire, vast digital music library by using the shuffle feature on an mp3 player and Dr Brown shares how his affinity for music subscription services has resulted in spending more time listening to playlists than albums. Both of us discuss how creating playlists and other digital interactions with music are forms of music-making, expanding upon the traditional definition of music-making and musicianship. Our reflection situates our own experiences against the landscape of relevant research findings, including those concerning playlist creation, agency and control over listening, and what psychological theories, like Uses and Gratifications theory, offer in terms of understanding listening behaviours. We also hypothesize about listening practices in the future, considering changing technologies, the impact of COVID-19, and health and well-being implications, given that musical preferences now have as much to do with the mediums used to listen to music - and the functions that they serve - than the actual music selected.
Hypothesis. Due to upward social comparison, we hypothesized that exposure to reality television ... more Hypothesis. Due to upward social comparison, we hypothesized that exposure to reality television singing (a technically demanding style of contemporary commercial music singing) would negatively influence singing self-concept compared to hearing amateur singers or plain, unembellished singing by professionals. Study Design and Methods. A between-subjects, online experiment was used. A sample of 212 individuals (Mage = 33.14; 69.30% female) participated in the study. After completing a background section, participants were randomly allocated into one of the experimental conditions (hearing one of four versions of a well-known song: a control version with piano and no singing, amateur singing, professional plain singing, and professional singing in the style of reality television singing). Participants were then asked to judge the performance they heard and to respond to items concerning their singing self-concept (including singing ability). Results and Conclusions. A series of ANCOVAs was used to examine the impact of the experimental condition on the participants’ performance judgments and singing self-concept. The amateur singing was judged as the lowest quality. While there was no significant difference by experimental condition regarding possessing good singing ability, the experimental condition did affect people’s singing aspirations and perceived ability to sing along with the performers. The pattern of results suggests that exposure to reality television-style singing may have negative impacts on people’s singing self-concept via upward social comparison. Self-concept has been identified as an important predictor of musical engagement and participation and plays a role in motivating action. These results encourage music educators, singing voice pedagogues, and community musicians seeking to promote musical and singing participation to be aware of cultural influences on an individual’s singing self-concept.
What constitutes “good singing” can be hotly contested amongst singing voice pedagogues, yet litt... more What constitutes “good singing” can be hotly contested amongst singing voice pedagogues, yet little is known about what the general public considers to be “good singing”. Within a program of research on musical identity and singing self-concept, this mixed-methods pilot study considered how members of the public (N = 52) described and evaluated stylistically different versions of a sung melody to test a hypothesis that reality TV singing may be deemed as “good singing”. Participants were exposed to three versions of “Happy Birthday”: 1) amateurs singing “as they would normally sing”; 2) professionals performing a “plain” version; 3) the same professionals singing an embellished version in the style of The Voice reality TV show. Results indicate that both professional versions were considered “better singing” than the amateur singing. While respondents focused on the technical deficiencies for amateurs, descriptions of the professionals concerned style. Stated exemplars of “good singing” were split between the two professional versions—based on sophistication and creativity (“professional: embellished”) or vocal quality (“professional: plain”). While respondents’ preferred version largely matched their chosen exemplar of “good singing”, participants were more likely to sing along with the “amateur” version. Implications for singing voice pedagogy and engagement in singing activities for wellbeing are considered.
A limited amount of previous research suggests that deteriorating socioeconomic conditions may be... more A limited amount of previous research suggests that deteriorating socioeconomic conditions may be associated with greater popularity of music lyrics featuring negative emotional content and references to relationships. The present research considered this in charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic. A dataset based on the song lyrics of the top-5 charting weekly songs in the UK and USA from January 1999 to August 2020 was computer-analysed for interpersonal variables, such as satisfaction and human interest, and positive and negative emotional valence. Results indicated lower satisfaction and human interest in lyrics in the USA and UK in the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the lyrics in charting songs in 2015-2019. The USA charting songs in 2020 also saw higher leveling and negative emotional content; and, when considering monthly data from 1999-2020, there was a positive association between economic misery and the number of negatively-valenced words. The findings broaden our understanding of the relationship between significant global events and trends in popular music.
Everyday stressors—the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday li... more Everyday stressors—the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday life—are common. The present research examined the relationship between everyday stressors and the use of music listening as a coping mechanism. In particular, it examined the use of music listening to cope with different types of everyday stressor and examined the relationship between this usage and listener characteristics, including demographics and music engagement style. Participants in the USA, Australia, and Malaysia (N =553) completed an online survey. A factor analysis was used to identify five types of everyday stressor: Social, Financial, Performance Responsibilities, Work-related, and Daily Displeasures. Individuals listened to music significantly more often to cope with social and work-related stressors than performance responsibilities and daily displeasures. Moreover, individuals who demonstrated a stronger affective listening style and those who reported listening to music for emotion/problem-orientated and avoidance/disengagement reasons were found to listen to music most often to cope with everyday stressors. These findings have implications, for both listeners and health professionals, when considering how music listening can be used as a self-administered tool for coping with everyday stressors.
This study uses identity process theory to understand the social-psychological processes that mot... more This study uses identity process theory to understand the social-psychological processes that motivate individuals to construct an identity in which music, singing, and singing teaching feature prominently. We conducted reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 10 Australian singing teachers (with an average age 60) to understand how they enacted identity principles that motivate identity construction and maintenance. Findings were captured in two themes: (1) 'It has just been music': Living a musical life is my destiny; (2) 'I know my value': Achieving goals in music and teaching is motivating. Participants' consistent musical engagement across the lifespan satisfied the identity principles of continuity and positive distinctiveness. The identity principles of self-efficacy and self-esteem were satisfied through the social connections created with peers and through teaching singing; participants derived self-worth from celebrating and contributing to the success of others. Teaching singing was a way to become 'singular', that is, distinctive, and distinctively valued by the self and others. This article provides an example of how identity process theory can be applied in musical identities research to uncover new insights into the psychological processes of identity construction, with implications for understanding identity resilience and musical engagement across the lifespan.
Objective: The unique circumstances of COVID-19 have raised questions of best practices for how t... more Objective: The unique circumstances of COVID-19 have raised questions of best practices for how to teach statistics virtually. The present study evaluated which characteristics of statistics learning activities in the virtual environment increase undergraduate psychology students' (a) engagement, (b) satisfaction, and (c) knowledge of statistics. Method: Semi-structured focus groups (N = 13 participants, aged 21-58, 64.3% female, 28.6% male, 7.1% gender fluid) were conducted. The focus group conversations were transcribed and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results: The findings indicate three main themes: catering to/supporting external students, why learning statistics online does not work, and how to make teaching and learning statistics online work. Social norms that prioritise time efficiency over engagement and interaction mean that the immediacy of learning and engaging with an instructor is often lost virtually. Suggestions for how to improve teaching and learning statistics online centred on readily accessible content, statistical software access, a teaching delivery that is methodical and flexible, immediacy of instructor response, and prioritising student-student and studentinstructor connection. Conclusion: These findings illustrate key challenges specific to teaching and learning statistics virtually, with real implications for how to better design and implement related curriculum.
Although research literacy is necessary for the competent delivery of psychological services, man... more Although research literacy is necessary for the competent delivery of psychological services, many psychology students hold negative attitudes toward research subjects. The current study explored undergraduate students' perceptions of research subjects relative to nonresearch subjects. A sample of 249 Australian (45.4%) and Singaporean (54.6%) first-year university students (M age = 21.27, SD age = 5.14, females = 75.9%) indicated their interest in, and perceived value of, 32 psychology subjects (based on title and a short description). They also nominated their most/least interested and valued subject and provided a free-text explanation for their selections. Participants perceived research subjects as significantly less interesting and valuable relative to nonresearch subjects (d values were indicative of a large difference for interest and a small-to-medium different for value). Cluster analysis indicated that research subjects are seen as distinct, forming their own cluster. This finding was supported by thematic analysis of participants' open-ended responses. Students considered research subjects to be especially difficult, requiring skills they did not possess or enjoy using (e.g., mathematics), and lacking relevance to their future studies and intended careers. The findings suggest that research methods instructors should aim to emphasize the relevance of research to practice in high interest areas (e.g., psychopathology).
A recent examination of charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVI... more A recent examination of charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic indicated that popular music lyrics during turbulent socioeconomic conditions had more negatively valenced words, providing support for the Environmental Security Hypothesis. However, the use of chart data alone cannot speak to what individuals are listening to against the backdrop of COVID-19. The present mixed-methods case study examined a crowdsourced playlist (n = 55 songs) created by Australian residents during an extended lockdown in September-October 2021. Qualitative analysis of the lyrics demonstrated that the selected music expresses a closeness to others, references to the current situation (such as illness and staying at home), negative emotions (including confusion and fear), a positive outlook (expressing perseverance and a will to survive), and a changing sense of time. Quantitative analyses compared the "pandemic playlist" songs to charting songs during the first six months of the pandemic in 2020 and the same period in 2021 (n = 28 and 26 songs, respectively) with regard to their musical features (using scraped Spotify API data) and lyrical content (using Diction). The findings indicated that the songs included in the "pandemic playlist" differed significantly from the charting songs in 2020 and 2021 by being higher in energy (relative to 2020 and 2021) and less acoustic (relative to 2021). Additionally, the lyrics of the "pandemic playlist" songs had significantly more positively valenced words. These differences suggest that people believed music selected in response to the pandemic ought to be upbeat and realistic (playlist suggestions), but popular songs were relatively pensive and reflected uncertainty and isolation (chart data). These findings broaden our understanding of music listening behaviors in response to societal stress.
Practice is essential to the acquisition and development of musical skills, requiring musicians' ... more Practice is essential to the acquisition and development of musical skills, requiring musicians' time, investment, application, motivation, metacognitive strategies, and ability to self-regulate. Research in children's music practice indicates the type, quality, and duration of practice, along with adult support, contributes to fluency in musical development; and when progress occurs, children invest in further practice. However, nuances in children's lived experiences of musical practice that influence these critical factors are largely unknown. To understand the complex issues in children's practice, this study employed a unique pairing of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis and Participatory Action Research to investigate 14 seven-year-old beginner cellists' practice during early learning and explored how their thoughts and experiences evolved over the first 18 months of lessons. Providing rare insight into children's perceptions of musical development and the vital role of parents and teachers in nurturing engagement, three superordinate themes emerged: (a) four approaches to practice, characterized by practice structure, learner behavior, and family support, (b) a three-phase practice process, and (c) perfection ideation. Positive experiences, including creative activities, within these thematic contexts fostered children's enjoyment in early musical development, supported productive learning interactions, and sustained engagement. Together, the findings have meaningful pedagogical implications for instrumental music teaching practice.
Today, most everyday music listening is an accompaniment to other activities; it is far less comm... more Today, most everyday music listening is an accompaniment to other activities; it is far less common that listening is someone’s primary activity, receiving most of their attention. In this article, we present a case study, Listen Up, run by Indigo Project, a mental health organization in Sydney, Australia, in which we explored relationships between participants’ responses to the experience and their demographics and styles of music engagement. A sample of 187 Australian residents (aged 20–64years) who attended Listen Up completed a survey measuring music engagement; emotional responses to the experience; perceived outcomes of the session; pre- and post-measures of stress, mood, and anxiety; and free-text responses to questions concerning their experiences of listening mindfully and any thoughts or feelings that arose during the session. Participants experienced an increased mood and decreased levels of stress and arousal after taking part in Listen Up. Their focused-listening experiences were not simply characterized by enjoying the music; rather, the emotions evoked were varied and complex. We characterized their emotional responses as negative, positive, evocative and expressive, and sad; in addition, participants characterized their own experiences as a cathartic journey resolving into a positive, peaceful, and calm state. Reported outcomes of participating in Listen Up included experiences described as being emotionally challenging, therapeutic, and physically uncomfortable. An affective music engagement style was positively associated with evocative and expressive and sad emotional experiences, and therapeutic outcomes. As a focused listening experience, Listen Up provides participants with the opportunity not only to attend to music but also to reflect on and process their personal thoughts and feelings. This research provides evidence for the emotional and mental health benefits of focused music listening, such that, focused listening reflects opportunities for strong experiences with music in today’s listening landscape.
Professional musicians with strong identities in music may also have a high degree of music in th... more Professional musicians with strong identities in music may also have a high degree of music in their identities. Accordingly, a rigid identification with work may be problematic for musicians, particularly when forces beyond their control change their work circumstances. In this study we conducted semi-structured interviews with 10 singing teachers, representing a subset of professional musicians, and used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to explore the ways in which they enacted music in their identities. The framework of musical identities in action was used to interpret the findings, revealing the dynamic, embodied, and situated complexity of music in participants' identities. Music had existential salience in the accounts of nine participants. Its salience resulted from the dynamic and situated presence of music across the lifespan, the literal embodiment of the singing voice, and the metaphorical embodiment of the presence of music in participants' experiences. While a strong sense of music in people's identities can promote lifelong engagement with music, if the emphasis on music is existential, the identity of a professional musician may be at risk when they are faced with an external threat to their livelihood. This is important knowledge for music educators and professional musicians' career thinking.
In Australia today, radio continues to draw large audiences, with high engagement among older adu... more In Australia today, radio continues to draw large audiences, with high engagement among older adults. This research investigated how radio personnel and listeners regard the purpose of radio, and further how engaging with radio is perceived to influence listener wellbeing. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with radio personnel (N = 16) and focus groups with older adult listeners (N = 32) suggest that the purpose of radio is to stay informed (e.g., news and information), for entertainment (e.g., music), and for perceived social purposes (e.g., communion, social connection, company, and companionship). Findings indicate there are implicit and explicit ways in which radio facilitates the wellbeing of their listenership. Explicitly, radio promotes mental health through broadcasts and programming, as well as exploiting the medium of radio as a public service for the community to call and rely on. Participants implicitly indicated that radio acts as a surrogate friend in their home; someone to keep them company and encourage connection to their greater community. Broadly, perceived relationships with radio programs and individual presenters, built and sustained over time through repeating listening, underpin the radio's ability to support listener wellbeing. These findings have implications for broadcasting practices as well as future work concerning how the radio might be used as a widely accessible tool for promoting quality of older life.
Empathy enables successful communication and connection between teachers and their students, yet ... more Empathy enables successful communication and connection between teachers and their students, yet few studies have investigated its specific use in teaching singing. Addressing this gap, we interviewed voice teachers to discover how they articulate their pedagogy in terms of empathic practices and observed one-to-one lessons for evidence of the same. A sample of 27 classical and music theatre voice teachers in Australia (70% females, 30% males), aged 35-75 years old (M = 55) were interviewed. Of this cohort, seven teachers were observed in their one-to-one teaching practices. Interviews and observations were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Results indicated that voice teachers tailor their practices to the needs of students and demonstrate characteristics of teacher empathy identified in previous literature: effective communication, positive relationships, care, learning environment, trust, morality, and listening. Empathic teaching facilitates an individualised approach in which singing students are supported and motivated in their own autonomous learning environment. These findings have implications for voice pedagogy that features the use of empathy to benefit of future students.
We examine associations between prevailing weather conditions and music features in all available... more We examine associations between prevailing weather conditions and music features in all available songs that reached the United Kingdom weekly top charts throughout a 67-year period (1953-2019), comprising 23 859 unique entries. We found that music features reflecting high intensity and positive emotions were positively associated with daily temperatures and negatively associated with rainfall, whereas music features reflecting low intensity and negative emotions were not related to weather conditions. These results held true after controlling for the mediating effects of year (temporal patterns) and month (seasonal patterns). However, music-weather associations were more nuanced than previously assumed by linear models, becoming only meaningful in those months and seasons when changes in weather were the most notable. Importantly, the observed associations depended on the popularity of the music: while songs in the top 10 of the charts exhibited the strongest associations with weather, less popular songs showed no relationship. This suggests that a song's fit with prevailing weather may be a factor pushing a song into the top of the charts. Our work extends previous research on non-musical domains (e.g. finance, crime, mental health) by showing that large-scale population-level preferences for cultural phenomena (music) are also influenced by broad environmental factors that exist over long periods of time (weather) via mood-regulation mechanisms. We discuss these results in terms of the limited nature of correlational studies and cross-cultural generalizability.
International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology, 2023
In this study, we sought to develop-and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived ... more In this study, we sought to develop-and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived from-a new Psychological Flow Scale (PFS). We propose a parsimonious model of three core dimensions of flow, reflecting the findings from a recent scoping review that synthesised flow research across scientific disciplines. The validation process for the PFS addressed recent conceptual criticisms of flow science regarding construct validity, theoretical compatibility, relational ambiguity, and definitional inconsistency. An initial review and analysis of the many flow measurements that exist found that these instruments either assess one, some, or none of the three core-dimensions of flow; often measuring similar dimensions that may bear resemblance to one of the three-dimensions but differ in dimensional meaning. PFS item development involved a phase of theoretical scrutiny, review of existing instruments, item generation, and expert review of items. Subsequently, 936 participants were recruited for scale development purposes, which included sample testing, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. This factor analytic process showed evidence for three distinguishable dimensions 'under' a single general or higher-order factor (i.e., global flow). With respect to external aspects of validity, flow scores correlated positively with perceptions of competence, self-rated performance, autotelic personality, and negatively with anxiety and stress scores. In conclusion, we present preliminary evidence for the theoretical and operational Public Significance Statement This article presents evidence of validity for a new Psychological Flow Scale (PFS) that assesses the core aspects of the flow state, and has been designed to be utilized across domains and scientific disciplines. Confirmatory findings suggest that the response scale is a suitable fit to assess flow globally, whilst the dimensions of absorption, effortless control, and intrinsic reward can be assessed by the three subscales. Flow scores correlated positively with perceptions of competence, self-rated performance, autotelic personality; and correlated negatively with anxiety and stress. The article offers suggestions regarding important aspects of flow measurement.
While studies have defined voice teacher expertise, seldom have associations been made between vo... more While studies have defined voice teacher expertise, seldom have associations been made between voice teachers and their students’ performing achievements. This study investigated which characteristics and attributes of successful classical and music theatre voice teachers influence student success. A sample of 123 Australian voice teachers (77% females, 22% males, 1% non-binary), aged 26-78 years old (M=48.23), completed an online, quantitative survey examining teacher background, experience, and genre. Additionally, standardised, quantitative measures examined psychological components such as teacher empathy and leadership. Findings demonstrated statistically significant associations between greater student achievement and the teacher’s own performance and teacher training and achievements as well as the number of students they have taught. Additionally, teacher leadership, specifically training facilitation and positive feedback, was statistically positively associated with student achievement. Teacher genre was not found to influence student success. These findings indicate that incorporating leadership training into voice pedagogy courses, while facilitating ongoing performing and professional development, could contribute to voice teacher expertise which would conceivably produce more successful students.
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 2023
Statistical literacy, one of the core skills embedded in tertiary psychology education, is best t... more Statistical literacy, one of the core skills embedded in tertiary psychology education, is best taught using active learning pedagogy. Although a plethora of research has examined how the implementation of emergency online learning (EOL) in response to COVID-19 impacted teaching and learning in general, limited research has considered how this change affected tertiary teaching of psychology statistics specifically. We conducted an exploratory, two-phase, mixed-method study to consider how the implementation of EOL during COVID-19 impacted the teaching of research methods and statistics at tertiary institutions in Australia. A sample of 21 tertiary educators in Australia (52% females, 48% males), aged 26–55 (M = 39.75) completed an online survey, which included quantitative and qualitative items addressing experiences with online teaching and COVID-19 EOL. Of this cohort, we interviewed three educators about their experience in teaching statistics; changes in teaching conditions from 2019 to the present; challenges and advantages of EOL; and student satisfaction, engagement, and performance. Overall, we found that previous experience with online learning was a better indicator of success in EOL than years of teaching in general. Educators also felt underprepared and under-resourced from their institutions. Many challenges of EOL were identified, with access to statistical software being the key challenge unique to teaching statistics. Overcoming technological inequities was recommended to improve EOL outcomes in the future.
Community language radio is known to provide information and social connection for community memb... more Community language radio is known to provide information and social connection for community members. This article examines the role of community language radio in Australia during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Drawing on data from interviews with four presenters at a community language radio station in Melbourne, this case study explores the station’s operation during the pandemic and presenter perceptions of the station’s contributions to supporting listeners’ well-being. To situate our study more globally, the case study was preceded by an examination of press reporting on the role of radio during the pandemic. Overall, our findings indicate that community language radio has played a vital role in promoting listener well-being by communicating information about COVID-19 and by providing a sense of comfort, entertainment and companionship through regular broadcasting. Results are discussed considering crisis communication and resilience theory to highlight the vital role community language radio plays for migrant communities during crises.
Several studies show that a concept or object is more popular when it is easier to process. The p... more Several studies show that a concept or object is more popular when it is easier to process. The present research applies this notion of processing fluency to the lyrics of all 271 top 5 songs on the United Kingdom chart for each week from 1999 to 2014. The processing fluency of the lyrics was computer scored for readability, presence of rhyme, and complexity, and popularity was assessed in terms of peak chart position and duration of tenure on the chart. After controlling for the energy of the musical component of the song, analyses showed that factors relating to the processing fluency of the lyrics predicted peak popularity but not duration of chart tenure. Significant relationships were observed between peak popularity and both rhyme saturation and basic lyric readability properties.
Here we present a dialogue between ourselves – Dr Amanda Krause and Dr Steven Brown, two music ps... more Here we present a dialogue between ourselves – Dr Amanda Krause and Dr Steven Brown, two music psychology researchers, with expertise in people’s everyday music listening behaviours. Through conversation, we reflect on and compare our personal music listening practices. In particular, our dialogue focuses on the impact the digital revolution had on our use of emerging digital listening technologies (specifically mobile devices, playlists, and shuffle), how our practices have developed over time, and how these practices have been negotiated due to our research studies and findings. For instance, Dr Krause recounts how she became driven to listen to her entire, vast digital music library by using the shuffle feature on an mp3 player and Dr Brown shares how his affinity for music subscription services has resulted in spending more time listening to playlists than albums. Both of us discuss how creating playlists and other digital interactions with music are forms of music-making, expanding upon the traditional definition of music-making and musicianship. Our reflection situates our own experiences against the landscape of relevant research findings, including those concerning playlist creation, agency and control over listening, and what psychological theories, like Uses and Gratifications theory, offer in terms of understanding listening behaviours. We also hypothesize about listening practices in the future, considering changing technologies, the impact of COVID-19, and health and well-being implications, given that musical preferences now have as much to do with the mediums used to listen to music - and the functions that they serve - than the actual music selected.
Hypothesis. Due to upward social comparison, we hypothesized that exposure to reality television ... more Hypothesis. Due to upward social comparison, we hypothesized that exposure to reality television singing (a technically demanding style of contemporary commercial music singing) would negatively influence singing self-concept compared to hearing amateur singers or plain, unembellished singing by professionals. Study Design and Methods. A between-subjects, online experiment was used. A sample of 212 individuals (Mage = 33.14; 69.30% female) participated in the study. After completing a background section, participants were randomly allocated into one of the experimental conditions (hearing one of four versions of a well-known song: a control version with piano and no singing, amateur singing, professional plain singing, and professional singing in the style of reality television singing). Participants were then asked to judge the performance they heard and to respond to items concerning their singing self-concept (including singing ability). Results and Conclusions. A series of ANCOVAs was used to examine the impact of the experimental condition on the participants’ performance judgments and singing self-concept. The amateur singing was judged as the lowest quality. While there was no significant difference by experimental condition regarding possessing good singing ability, the experimental condition did affect people’s singing aspirations and perceived ability to sing along with the performers. The pattern of results suggests that exposure to reality television-style singing may have negative impacts on people’s singing self-concept via upward social comparison. Self-concept has been identified as an important predictor of musical engagement and participation and plays a role in motivating action. These results encourage music educators, singing voice pedagogues, and community musicians seeking to promote musical and singing participation to be aware of cultural influences on an individual’s singing self-concept.
What constitutes “good singing” can be hotly contested amongst singing voice pedagogues, yet litt... more What constitutes “good singing” can be hotly contested amongst singing voice pedagogues, yet little is known about what the general public considers to be “good singing”. Within a program of research on musical identity and singing self-concept, this mixed-methods pilot study considered how members of the public (N = 52) described and evaluated stylistically different versions of a sung melody to test a hypothesis that reality TV singing may be deemed as “good singing”. Participants were exposed to three versions of “Happy Birthday”: 1) amateurs singing “as they would normally sing”; 2) professionals performing a “plain” version; 3) the same professionals singing an embellished version in the style of The Voice reality TV show. Results indicate that both professional versions were considered “better singing” than the amateur singing. While respondents focused on the technical deficiencies for amateurs, descriptions of the professionals concerned style. Stated exemplars of “good singing” were split between the two professional versions—based on sophistication and creativity (“professional: embellished”) or vocal quality (“professional: plain”). While respondents’ preferred version largely matched their chosen exemplar of “good singing”, participants were more likely to sing along with the “amateur” version. Implications for singing voice pedagogy and engagement in singing activities for wellbeing are considered.
A limited amount of previous research suggests that deteriorating socioeconomic conditions may be... more A limited amount of previous research suggests that deteriorating socioeconomic conditions may be associated with greater popularity of music lyrics featuring negative emotional content and references to relationships. The present research considered this in charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic. A dataset based on the song lyrics of the top-5 charting weekly songs in the UK and USA from January 1999 to August 2020 was computer-analysed for interpersonal variables, such as satisfaction and human interest, and positive and negative emotional valence. Results indicated lower satisfaction and human interest in lyrics in the USA and UK in the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the lyrics in charting songs in 2015-2019. The USA charting songs in 2020 also saw higher leveling and negative emotional content; and, when considering monthly data from 1999-2020, there was a positive association between economic misery and the number of negatively-valenced words. The findings broaden our understanding of the relationship between significant global events and trends in popular music.
Everyday stressors—the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday li... more Everyday stressors—the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday life—are common. The present research examined the relationship between everyday stressors and the use of music listening as a coping mechanism. In particular, it examined the use of music listening to cope with different types of everyday stressor and examined the relationship between this usage and listener characteristics, including demographics and music engagement style. Participants in the USA, Australia, and Malaysia (N =553) completed an online survey. A factor analysis was used to identify five types of everyday stressor: Social, Financial, Performance Responsibilities, Work-related, and Daily Displeasures. Individuals listened to music significantly more often to cope with social and work-related stressors than performance responsibilities and daily displeasures. Moreover, individuals who demonstrated a stronger affective listening style and those who reported listening to music for emotion/problem-orientated and avoidance/disengagement reasons were found to listen to music most often to cope with everyday stressors. These findings have implications, for both listeners and health professionals, when considering how music listening can be used as a self-administered tool for coping with everyday stressors.
The transition to motherhood for first-time mothers can be characterised by psychological distres... more The transition to motherhood for first-time mothers can be characterised by psychological distress, which can result from inadequate support during the perinatal period. Limited accessibility to support in rural and remote areas means that it is imperative new parents have access to quality, online resources. To this end, we have created a podcast series aimed at promoting parenting skills and well-being – the series presents episodes that feature the hosts interviewing a range of guests, including practitioners, researchers, and educators, on topics relating to self-care, infant care, and relationships. Using the Bamboo Parenting Podcast as a case study, we examined how a podcast series can promote parenting self-efficacy and parental well-being, and whether a podcast, as edutainment, has the reach to enhance positive parenting at a population level. Utilising autoethnography and focus groups with podcast listeners, we considered the podcast series’ purpose, applicability, and reach. Additionally, we probed listeners’ intentions to continue engaging in self-directed online support, and the impact of engaging with the podcast on their parenting practices and well-being. With data collection underway, case study results will be presented, focusing on those pertaining to the impact of engaging in a podcast on parenting and well-being. Discussion of the findings will also address creatively disseminating health information to new mothers via podcasts and how to optimize online health resources. The project findings have broad implications, including the process of translating research findings into engaging, public-facing edutainment to better produce health education materials.
Social surrogacy can provide a sense of belonging, develop attachments overtime, and represent re... more Social surrogacy can provide a sense of belonging, develop attachments overtime, and represent real social bonds (Schäfer & Eerola, 2020). Music and radio listening can function as a social surrogate, engendering feelings of connection and community in the absence of direct interaction (Krause, 2020). Radio itself draws high engagement from large audiences in Australia and is considered to be “perfectly placed to tackle the far-reaching social issue of loneliness” (Order, 2017, p. 244). This is important given social isolation and loneliness are ever-pressing societal concerns, especially as the impact on our health is comparable to that of sedentary lifestyles, obesity, and smoking (House, et al., 1988). In this presentation, we will consider how the radio might be used as a free and widely accessible tool for promoting social connection and, thus, quality of life. Specifically, we will draw on our recent research on radio engagement for older adult well-being as a case study. From interviews and focus-groups conducted with radio personnel and older adult listeners, results indicate that radio acts as a social surrogate in people’s lives, proving information, entertainment, and companionship. Radio presenters keep listeners company through perceived relationships, built and sustained over time, that facilitate a sense of friendship as well as connection with the greater community. This underpins the radio’s ability to support listener well-being. Findings have implications for discussions on creatively promoting the well-being of individuals and communities in cost effective and accessible ways.
56th Australian Association of Gerontology Conference, 2023
This AAG-supported program of mixed-methods research investigated how radio presenters might faci... more This AAG-supported program of mixed-methods research investigated how radio presenters might facilitate listeners’ sense of well-being. In Australia today, radio continues to draw large audiences, with high engagement among older adults. We examined how radio personnel and listeners think about the purpose of radio to further consider how engaging with radio is perceived to influence listener well-being. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with radio personnel (N = 16) and focus groups with older adult listeners (N = 32) suggest that the purpose of radio is to stay informed (e.g., news and information), for entertainment (e.g., music), and for perceived social purposes (e.g., communion, social connection, company, and companionship). Findings indicate there are implicit and explicit ways in which radio facilitates the well-being of their listenership. Explicitly, radio promotes mental health through broadcasts and programming, as well as utilizing the medium of radio as a public service for the community to call and rely on. Participants implicitly indicated that radio acts as a social surrogate in their home; someone to keep them company and encourage connection to their greater community. Broadly, perceived relationships with radio programs and individual presenters, built and sustained over time through repeating listening, underpin the radio’s ability to support listener well-being. These findings have implications for broadcasting practices as well as future work concerning how the radio might be used as a widely accessible tool for promoting quality of older life.
An examination of charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVID-19 p... more An examination of charting popular music before and during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic indicated that popular music lyrics during turbulent socioeconomic conditions had more negatively valenced words. However, the use of chart data cannot speak to what individuals are listening to against the backdrop of COVID-19. The present mixed-methods study examined a crowdsourced, collaborative, publicly available playlist (n = 55 songs) created by Australian residents who were currently experiencing extended lockdown in September-October 2021 in order to continue to develop our understanding of how music can influence our well-being. Qualitative analysis of the song lyrics of the chosen music expresses a sense of uncertainty, loneliness, and resilience, as well as references to hygiene and illness, community, perseverance and a will to survive. Quantitative analyses were performed to compare the chosen ‘pandemic playlist’ songs to charting songs during the first six months of the pandemic in 2020 and the same period in 2021 (n = 28 and 26 songs respectively). Analyses considered the musical features (using data scraped using the Spotify API) and the lyrical content (using Diction). Findings indicated that the songs included in the ‘pandemic playlist’ differed significantly from the charting songs in 2020 and 2021 by being higher in energy and less acoustic. Additionally, the lyrics of the songs in the ‘pandemic playlist’ had significantly more positively valenced words. These findings broaden our understanding of music listening behaviours and well-being in the context of significant global events, such as extended lockdowns to combat COVID-19.
2021 Autumn SEMPRE conference: Engaging and Interacting with Education, Music and Psychology Research, 2021
Rap music is disproportionately associated with criminality and negative personality traits relat... more Rap music is disproportionately associated with criminality and negative personality traits relative to other genres and that these biases may be influenced by racial- and gender-based stereotypes. The present research is a replication-extension of Fischoff’s (1999) study, which examined potential jurors’ perceptions of a male gangsta-rap lyricist on trial for murder. We examined whether a description of a hypothetical rap music fan will (1) receive more negative personality ratings and associations with criminality when presented alongside inflammatory rap lyrics and (2) whether the gender of the rap fan influences these ratings.
2021 Autumn SEMPRE conference: Engaging and Interacting with Education, Music and Psychology Research, 2021
People’s identities are multi-dimensional; thus, people can hold multiple identities that are mor... more People’s identities are multi-dimensional; thus, people can hold multiple identities that are more or less important to defining themselves. In previous research, it has been noted that individuals consider a wide range of musical experiences and activities as factoring into their musical identity. Can the same be said for a scientific identity? This research considers factors influencing people’s musical and scientific identity and sets out to specifically compare music- and science-based identities. With data collection underway, the SEMPRE conference presentation will discuss preliminary findings from the research project’s first phase in order to further develop the remaining project phases.
Background
Most research on correlates of music preference considers micro-level influences, such... more Background Most research on correlates of music preference considers micro-level influences, such as personality and social positional levels (Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003; North & Hargreaves, 1996). However, it is important to consider macro-level influences, such as cultural norms and the effects of time and weather, as well. An interesting macro-level influence that is gaining research attention is the consideration of seasonal effects (Helmholz, et al., 2017; Krause & North, 2018; Park, et al., 2019). For example, Krause and North’s (2018, p. 89) research demonstrated that listeners preferred “arousing music for the warmer months, serene music for spring, and melancholy music for the cooler months”. Aims The present study is a replication-extension study of Krause and North’s (2018) research. The aims of the present study included: 1. Replicating their findings drawing on a larger, global sample (including non-western countries and those with varying weather patterns and at different latitudes). 2. Exploring the extent that proxies for country and seasons (latitude) modulate response patterns. Method A total of 2,140 participants from 47 countries across 4 continents completed an online questionnaire, which consisted of answering background questions and responding to a series of questions concerning the creation of music playlists. Importantly, as in Krause and North (2018), participants rated how well 24 adjectives (from three factors: Arousing, Serene, and Melancholy) describe preferred music for playlists (for each season); also, they indicated their favourite season, the season they were currently experiencing, and their country of residence. Results Addressing the first aim, an exploratory factor analyses was conducted on the participants' adjective ratings to replicate that reported in Krause and North (2018). The results indicated that the proposed three factor solution on each of the four seasons from Autumn to Summer does not fit the data well using either the Comparitive Fit Index (0.79, 0.79, 0.81, 0.83) or Tucker Lewis Index (0.83, 0.83, 0.84, 0.86). We posit this model fit incongrunacy is due to initial model specification choices. Nevertheless, we continued our planned analyses and considered the impact of the participants’ country of residence. We tested the hypothesis that preferred arousal levels in music fluctuate according to the ecological environment: could countries with warmer summers prefer higher arousal music for warmer (summer) seasons, and countries with colder winters prefer lower arousal (melancholic) music for cooler (winter) seasons? Using mixed effects models with random effects for country, we found that countries with more extreme latitudes (warmer summers) preferred higher arousal music (b = -0.05, p = .036) for summer. However, no significant effect was observed for latitude and low arousal (melancholic) music (b = -0.03, p = .11). Conclusions By examining the replicability of Krause and North's (2018) findings on a larger set of participants and countries, the present research contributes to the developing body of psychological research on music preference at the macro-level, focusing on contributing to our understanding of how broader factors play a role in music preference and everyday listening behaviours. Moreover, the findings will be considered relative to research concerning seasonal variations in other behaviours and experiences, which may have additional influences on areas such as financial behaviours, aggression, mental health, and mood.
Background
Proprioception is considered essential to forming an aesthetic vocal experience, parti... more Background Proprioception is considered essential to forming an aesthetic vocal experience, particularly musculoskeletal proprioception or the ability to accurately sense position, movement, effort, muscular tension, sensation of posture, and balance when singing. Research into singing reveals that proprioceptive awareness leads to better coordination and enhances the singer’s overall understanding of their vocal function. While proprioception is also considered useful in vocal pedagogy, few studies have examined if/how proprioception contributes to voice teaching in the one-to-one context. Aims This project sought to understand in what way proprioception featured in the practices of tertiary classical and music theatre voice teachers. It specifically aimed to: 1) identify ways in which voice teachers demonstrate proprioceptive awareness when discussing their practices; and 2) observe how, and for what purpose, voice teachers engage proprioception when delivering voice lessons. Method A multiple-case study design involved interviews with teachers and observations of their lessons. Voice teachers (N=7, all working in Australia), selected through purposive sampling, were interviewed face-to-face and each was observed delivering three lessons (N=21) to professionally focused singing students. Interview transcripts and observation field notes were analysed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. Results Voice teachers revealed proprioceptive awareness when discussing their practices, such as sensing discomfort when a student sang with vocal tension. They also appeared to utilise proprioception as a diagnostic tool when addressing technical issues for their students. Further, teachers sought to develop proprioceptive awareness in their students through physical touch, verbal feedback, muscle release work, external tools (e.g., resistance bands), and breathwork. This was particularly evident where teachers focused students on how they felt when they were singing. Conclusions Voice teachers adopted a proprioceptive style of teaching, literally adopting a ‘hands-on’ approach and also asking students to reflect on their own physical sensations rather than on the sounds they were making. Further, voice teachers were shown to be developing proprioceptive awareness in their students to aid in achieving the complex sensorimotor coordination required in singing. Implications These findings have implications regarding vocal pedagogy courses training voice teachers to incorporate proprioceptive awareness in their practices.
Background
When children commence learning a musical instrument, they are introduced to a diverse... more Background When children commence learning a musical instrument, they are introduced to a diverse range of skills from the cognitive, expressive and psychomotor domains. Children’s capacity to adopt and integrate these musical skills can directly affect their progress and influence ongoing interest. However, as many of these skills are unfamiliar to the beginner musician, their development requires specialised support, deliberate attention and focussed practice. The outcomes of these learning processes can also be a critical to children’s future musical engagement. Children’s lived experience of musical instrument skill acquisition is rarely examined in music education research; therefore, the current paper adopts a novel case study approach to investigate how children perceive and manage musical skill development. Intrapersonal factors and interpersonal relationships including those with the teacher, who is the principal researcher, are also examined. Aims 1. To investigate seven-year-old children’s lived experience of cello skill development within the first 18-months of tuition. 2. To investigate how children’s musical skill development is affected by intrapersonal factors and interpersonal relationships. 3. To investigate how the experience and perceptions of skill development in early learning influences children’s longer-term musical engagement. Method Through a longitudinal Action Research methodology, 14 seven-year-old children’s lived experiences of learning the cello were tracked across the first 18-months of tuition. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of interviews with the children and their parents were integrated with the teacher-researcher’s recorded observations from work with the children. Results During the early stages of learning, children prioritised the development of skills in one of the three learning domains and this was attributed to initial competencies and affinities at the beginner level. As tuition progressed, teaching and learning challenges included ensuring that all skill sets developed according to the children’s individual, differentiated needs. Central to this developmental process was how the children’s intrapersonal factors interacted with their interpersonal relationships to shape their learning behaviour at home and in the instrumental music studio. Regardless of skill level or ability, all of the children measured their process in musical skill development through critical evaluation of their sound production. The children’s sophisticated perception of sound included discerning nuanced difference in quality of tone, intonation, volume, fluency and timbre. Production of an ideal sound that integrated these qualities was described as an aspirational goal in practice and performance. Sound was perceived also by the children as a powerful conduit for self-expression and musical communication. In this context, musical skill development fulfilled children’s creative needs and satisfied their desire to be seen and hear by others as capable musicians. This result generated growth in the children’s sense of agency and autonomy. When the complex process of skill attainment, sound production and musical expression was achieved successfully, students experienced transformed representations of their internal selves that positively impacted their emotional states. These transformative experiences were linked to a close affinity with their cello and this was evidenced by the children’s use of language devices such as metaphor, simile, analogy and imaginative narrative to describe how skill development strengthened their bond with the instrument. Further, some children ascribed anthropomorphic traits to their instruments, defining them as a person or ally and assigning names and gender pronouns. Investigation of students’ learning over time indicated that children who experienced beneficial interpersonal growth and productive interpersonal relationships through musical skill development maintained active longer-term musical engagement. These children described imagining themselves in positive performance and learning environments in their projected musical futures. Taken together, the findings from this investigation of children’s perceptions of musical skill development highlight how instrumental music learning can profoundly affect children’s inner worlds. The breadth and depth of the experience contributed to the children’s enjoyment in engagement and affected motivation to continue with their musical development. Conclusions This research, conducted by the teacher as researcher, makes a unique contribution to the literature by identifying the importance of children’s perception of sound in the process of cognitive, physical and emotional engagement with musical skill development. It identifies how this can have a transformative effect on a child’s sense of self and influence their future musical engagement. Implications Monitoring children’s perception of sound production and its impact on musical expression in the development of skills in the three learning domains is integral to instrumental music teaching and fosters meaningful, ongoing engagement outcomes.
Background
Professional chamber musicians, the venues that engage them and the audiences in atten... more Background Professional chamber musicians, the venues that engage them and the audiences in attendance interact, deploying values related to artistic skill and endeavour, public engagement and entertainment, prestige and financial viability. Plans, actions and responses feed the scope, quality and outcomes of the experience and require in-depth understanding particularly as we grapple with the challenges COVID-19 presents to the live music performance ecology. Aim This study investigates the experiences of professional chamber ensembles as they encounter musical and social demands, manage communications and deliver performances in a concert series within a premier venue. It aims to offer insights into micro (interpersonal) and macro (organisational/cultural) experiences between musicians, venue and audiences. Method Case study data come from 15 chamber ensembles (each comprising 2-5 players) participating in a concert series in a renowned Australian live music venue. These were first collected across 2019 and included: contextual information provided by the venue and the ensembles via email; field observations of the performances; and focus group discussions with performers, venue staff and audiences. Data were prepared (transcribed where necessary) and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Additional data have been collected following the first two waves of COVID-19, to offer insights into prospects for the ensembles and the venue entering the 2021 concert season. Results Emergent themes include the delicate balancing of economic, esteem and diversification values for both performers and venue in planning and accepting the work. Music cohesion offers a further point of emphasis, the ‘art of the ensemble’ being a key value for all stakeholders. A related theme of importance is interpersonal social interaction, at all levels and across all stages of planning and executing the performances. Pivotal factors surrounding the audience experience include depth of emotional experience, a balance between familiar and novel encounter, informality and experience of social inclusion. Conclusion Specific and often subtle transactions shape the motivations, planning and execution of ensemble performances. While stakeholders inevitably have different and varied experiences, their interactions are pivotal in determining satisfaction and continue the virtuous cycle of transactions that constitutes chamber music performance. Implications Fluid and responsive transactions seemingly sustain stakeholders in seeking routes to realise a ‘Covid Normal’ future in which the culture of ensemble performance can continue, now to be moderated using socially distanced, no-interval live performance and online variants suitable for potential lockdowns.
Listening to (mainstream) popular music in 2021 – Sounds and practices: International conference, 2021
Presented at Listening to (mainstream) popular music in 2021 – Sounds and practices: Internationa... more Presented at Listening to (mainstream) popular music in 2021 – Sounds and practices: International conference. Innsbruck, Austria [via Zoom].
Oral Presentation(s) Presenters will speak, sometimes with the aid of screen sharing presentation... more Oral Presentation(s) Presenters will speak, sometimes with the aid of screen sharing presentations Pa Panel Discussion A selection of presenters will discuss a topic W Workshop An interactive session, sometimes limited availability
The use of choral singing with marginalised groups is well established, most typically reported a... more The use of choral singing with marginalised groups is well established, most typically reported as means of providing opportunity for improved health particularly including social inclusion. The current paper aimed to investigate how singing groups work to engender deeper understanding within group and the broader community, purposefully expanding the scope of the discourse by focusing the study on emotion. The construction and expression of emotions is explored in the context of two case study choirs: a same sex and gender diverse youth chorus and a community senior choir. Interview results revealed the importance of corporeal, relational, socio-political and performative emotions, emphasising the core role of emotions in group singing experiences across different age groups with different founding objectives. This paper highlights the need to consider the work of emotions in social group contexts and also the power of emotions when experienced in musical contexts in particular.
This paper details implementing a community action research project with a government-run primary... more This paper details implementing a community action research project with a government-run primary school in an inner suburb of Melbourne, Australia. In this suburb, new wealthy owner-occupiers have superseded original residents, yet the suburb’s high-rise government housing blocks offer refuge for newly arrived families. Amongst this shifting community backdrop, the local primary school has seen its enrolment fall and seeks novel initiatives to address the increasingly diverse cultural needs of its community and attract local culture groups to the school. With school personnel and a small number of engaged local residents and parents, we developed a music playgroup for local area parents and their pre-school aged children. The playgroup, designed through community consultation and partnership, aimed to support positive transitions to school and build community amongst the multicultural group of school and community participants. We shall report on the challenges and benefits of conducting community action research. Reflective examination of members’ experiences, research practices, and project materials resulted in five themes which will be discussed: the process of implementing a University-approved research component within the playgroup’s organic paradigm; the various challenges and solutions concerning building engagement in the project and community; navigating varying stakeholder desires, including a focus on culturally inclusive practices and the role of music (and food) in the playgroup; facilitation challenges and un-anticipated acts of participant leadership; and concerns regarding funding and sustainability. The findings have implications for community music programs as well as community- and service-focused music education programs.
In Australia, as many as one-third of older people experience loneliness, and almost half of pers... more In Australia, as many as one-third of older people experience loneliness, and almost half of persons living in residential aged-care have had a diagnosis of depression. Strategies to support psychosocial well-being in older adults living in residential aged-care are desperately needed. Evidence points towards music listening as an effective, non- pharmacological tool with many social and emotional benefits, yet the specific nature of how to create and support everyday music listening opportunities for well-being benefit in residential aged-care remains under-researched. This presentation will discuss the results of a recent empirical investigation aimed at comparing the impact and benefit of implementing two different, technology-driven listening programs in order to promote psychosocial well-being in aged-care residents. Australian residents (aged 65+) living in two Mornington (VIC) care facilities participated in a two-month trial. Participants experienced one of two program conditions, facilitated by a music therapist: (1) individualized, one-to-one sessions centred around developing and using a personalized multi-media playlist or (2) small group sessions centred around listening to and discussing purpose-built radio programming. Interviews and surveys completed at the 0-, 1-, and 2-month timepoints collected data on the participants’ listening activities, session experiences, and well- being. Additional focus groups were held with facility staff in order to consider the programs with regard to their implementation and sustainability as well as the perceived impact on the residents. The findings discussed will provide an in-depth understanding of how everyday music listening activities in residential aged-care can assist older Australians’ psychosocial well-being, with broad implications concerning how everyday music listening can be used as a widely-accessed, low-cost tool for enhancing quality of later life. These findings and future work can lead to the development of evidence-based guidelines to support reproducible and sustainable programming guidelines that can be used to promote emotional regulation, community, and well-being.
Background: Many older people have restricted access to social contact and are highly vulnerable ... more Background: Many older people have restricted access to social contact and are highly vulnerable to a range of socio-emotional problems including loneliness and depression. Strategies to support psychosocial well-being in older, aged-care residents are desperately needed and evidence points towards music listening as an effective, non-pharmacological tool with many social and emotional benefits. Yet the specific psychosocial benefits pertaining to everyday music listening in residential aged-care remain under-researched and, thus, under-used as a resource to promote well-being. Objective: This recent empirical study investigated older adults’ experiences of music listening in their daily lives living in dependent aged-care and considered how music listening might support their psycho-social well-being. Method: Thirty-two Australian residents (aged 65-85) living in two Mornington (VIC) care facilities participated in semi-structured interviews. Results: The results of a thematic analysis revealed three interesting themes. Firstly, individuals distinguished their present ‘relationship’ with music from their past. For example, some participants stated they were no longer very interested in music; however, social dancing featured in nearly all of the residents’ lived experiences. Consideration of past dance experiences could be a way of re-igniting an interest in music. Secondly, while personal preferences varied, it was clear that individual preferences (and not their age broadly) need to be considered with regard to what is played in common spaces or what features in activities on offer (e.g., concerts). Thirdly, while many participants had listening technologies in their rooms, the TV was easier to use suggesting that alternative access could increase daily music listening. Conclusion: These findings provide an in-depth understanding of older Australians’ everyday listening practices, with broad implications when considering how music-related activities in aged-care facilities can be structured and supported so that they are engaging, meaningful, and promote emotional regulation, community, and well-being.
‘Building Bridges’ in Applied Arts and Health, Education and Community, An International Arts & Wellbeing Conference, 2019
This paper traces the development and execution of a community action research project working wi... more This paper traces the development and execution of a community action research project working with a government-run primary school in an inner suburb of Melbourne, Australia. Located in a suburb where new wealthy owner-occupiers have superseded original residents yet the suburb’s high-rise government housing blocks offer refuge for newly arrived families, many often fresh from painful refugee experiences, the local primary school has seen its enrolment tumble and desperately wants to address the increasingly diverse cultural needs of its community and attract local culture groups to the school through novel initiatives. With school personnel and a small number of engaged local residents and parents, we developed a music playgroup, to support positive transitions to school and build community amongst parents in the multicultural local area through communicative musicality experiences for parents and their pre-school aged children.
We shall report on the challenges of conducting community action research. This includes discussing the process of implementing a research component within the playgroup’s organic development and paradigm which complied with stringent University ethical procedures and timelines yet addressed the needs of a community partner. Through reflective examination of members’ experiences, research practices, and project materials, the discussion will also address the various challenges and solutions concerning building engagement in the project and community, navigating varying stakeholder desires, as well as funding and sustainability concerns. The findings have implications for community music programs as well as community- and service-focused music education programs.
The Future of Music and Arts in Medicine and Health (joint conference of the International Association for Music & Medicine and the International Society for Arts and Medicine), 2024
REMOTE A phenomenological case study of a physicianʼs experience with music therapy throughout t... more REMOTE A phenomenological case study of a physicianʼs experience with music therapy throughout the ECMO and lung transplant process during the COVID19 pandemic. -Laura McFee Intersectional collective empowerment: Dance performance projects with people experiencing depression -Callie Arnold MUSIC THERAPY IN CONGENITAL PULMONARY MALFORMATIONS an interdisciplinary family-centered care intervention from pregnancy to pediatrics surgical follow-up -Barbara Sgobbi Developing generative music technology for emotion self-regulation -Kathleen Agres Connecting to People Living with Dementia through Music: Perspectives from Community Musicians -Lucy Forde EEG-based analysis of the relaxation effect of music therapy, comparative analysis between standardized and personalized music -María Ignacia Cabrera, Stefanie Aeschlimann Meaning is not created by things you are good at -new healthy creative learning environments in higher academic education if students themselves can choose. -Eva Bojner Horwitz
56th Australian Association of Gerontology Conference, 2023
Background - By 2057, close to one in four of the Australian population will be over 65. This dev... more Background - By 2057, close to one in four of the Australian population will be over 65. This developing ageing population provides significant opportunities; however, there are also many challenges associated with older age which can profoundly impact individuals, their families and society as they attempt to manage the burden of care. While music has been identified as a promising way to improve older adults’ well-being, we have undertaken research to consider how the radio may be a useful tool in promoting psychosocial well-being. Aims - This program of research aimed to examine how relationships built through radio engagement amongst listeners and presenters may contribute to managing social and emotional challenges connected with older age. The project’s final aim was to develop a co-designed, evidence-based resource that would assist in disseminating the project’s findings to members of the community, radio stations, and aged care providers. Two guiding questions underpinned this research: How can stakeholders contribute to optimising the functionality of an evidence-based resource, and What design elements of the evidence-based resource effectively support the translation of research findings? Method - A community-based, participatory research approach was adopted that supported equitable partnerships between researchers and stakeholders. Brochure development was guided by a mixed-methods research design, and an iterative process of alternating rounds of feedback (via surveys, interviews, and focus groups) and resource refinement. Stakeholder discussions centred on opinions and suggestions pertaining to the resource’s purpose, applicability, content, and design. Results - The process describing the co-development of a brochure between university researchers and stakeholders will be outlined. With data collection still underway, thematic analyses of the focus group transcripts and resource drafts will identify themes concerning its content, design, applicability, and usability. Although, at times, challenging, working with co-designers and co-evaluators was productive and in line with person-centred care philosophy. Discussion of the findings will also address how collaborating with experts by experience represents a valuable approach for developing well-being research and resources. Conclusions - The project findings have broad implications concerning the impact that the radio can have on older adults’ psychosocial well-being. Additionally, findings regarding the process of co-designing a resource to disseminate project results have implications for how to better conduct community-based participatory research and produce written health education materials.
55th Australian Association of Gerontology Conference, 2022
This AAG-supported program of mixed-methods research investigated how radio presenters might faci... more This AAG-supported program of mixed-methods research investigated how radio presenters might facilitate listeners’ sense of well-being. According to Order (2017, p. 244), community radio broadcasting is “perfectly placed to tackle the far-reaching social issue of loneliness”. This is important to note in consideration of older adult well-being. Thus, it is worthwhile examining radio presenters in particular to determine if and how perceived social connections are established in their presentations. Analyses drawing on semi-structured interviews with 16 radio personnel in Melbourne indicate that there are two main themes concerning presenter attributes that are associated with developing relationships with listeners: communication skills (e.g., vocal quality, conversational, good listening) and interpersonal characteristics (e.g., personality, confidence, instinct). Further, radio presenters state that their perceptions of their listeners’ interests and needs influence their on-air behaviours. Their role in presenting effective radio is facilitative, and part of a finely tuned relationship involving their listeners and the content delivered. Overall, presenters indicate that they care about their listenership and seek to communicate in ways that promote listener engagement and well-being. Broader implications regarding radio listening for well-being in aged-care settings and healthy ageing policies will be discussed.
What constitutes “good singing” can be hotly contested amongst voice pedagogues. The literature o... more What constitutes “good singing” can be hotly contested amongst voice pedagogues. The literature on singing evaluation tends to focus on quantitatively measuring the acoustic properties of the voice or qualitative evaluations by expert listeners, who assess the singer’s vocal technique relative to the performed genre. However, little is known about what the general public considers to be “good singing”. Within a larger program of research on musical identity and singing self-concept, this small-scale, mixed-methods survey considered how people (N = 52) described and evaluated three stylistically different versions of a melody as sung by amateurs and professional vocalists to test a hypothesis that reality TV singing may be deemed as “good singing” by the public. Specifically, participants were exposed to three versions of “Happy Birthday”: 1) amateurs singing “as they would normally sing”; 2) professionals performing a “plain” version; 3) the same professionals singing a version in the style of The Voice reality TV show. Quantitative and qualitative results indicate that both professional versions were considered “better singing” than the amateur singing. While respondents focused on the technical deficiencies for amateurs, descriptions of the professionals concerned style. For the professional singers, it seems that technical considerations such as singing in tune were not remarked on because they were able to sing with pitch accuracy. Contrary to our hypothesis that the popularity of reality TV singing shows would influence public perceptions of good singing, people’s preferences for “good singing” were split between the two professional versions, with people focused on sophistication and creativity (the “professional voice” version) or vocal quality (the “professional plain” version). While respondents’ preferred version largely matched their chosen exemplar of “good singing”, participants were more likely to sing along with the “amateur” version. Implications for vocal pedagogy and engagement in singing activities for wellbeing will be considered.
Community radio is known to promote psychosocial well-being for individual presenters, listeners,... more Community radio is known to promote psychosocial well-being for individual presenters, listeners, and their communities. While previous studies highlight the benefits to volunteers getting involved in presenting, research has not examined presenter behaviours and how they might correspond with listener well-being. To better understand this, it is important to consider if presenters take into account how their approach to presenting radio may be received by their listeners. Our present research focuses on radio presenters and their backgrounds, specifically their individual differences (e.g., gender), how and why they got into radio, and what they perceive the purpose of radio to be. Individual, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 radio personnel from six stations broadcasting in Melbourne, Australia. Thematic analysis of the transcribed interview data indicates that radio presenters are often male which potentially correlates with the dominance of male presenters over previous generations. Program managers also noted a discrepancy in the gender of their presenters, commenting that they have actively sought out females in order to encourage station and listener diversity. While there was no singular or common process that led to a career in radio, male presenters commented that they always wanted to get into radio, or gave examples of other males they listened to when growing up. Females, on the other hand, often said they got into presenting in a more roundabout way. Presenting styles appeared to align with station foci; moreover, such an alignment appeared to underpin the purpose of their show and understanding of their listening audience. This presentation will contextualize how the presenters’ backgrounds and motivations have implications for how they develop and promote relationships with their listening audience and community. Broader implications regarding how these presenters play a role in promoting individual and community well-being will also be discussed.
According to Order (2017, p. 244), community radio broadcasting is "perfectly placed to tackle th... more According to Order (2017, p. 244), community radio broadcasting is "perfectly placed to tackle the far-reaching social issue of loneliness". This is important to note in consideration of older adult well-being. Thus, we have undertaken a program of mixed-methods research to investigate: 1) radio listeners' considerations of the purpose of radio; and 2) the potential role of radio in promoting listener well-being. With data collection still underway, preliminary analyses drawing on semi-structured focus groups with radio listeners suggest that listeners engage with radio for entertainment (e.g., music), information (e.g., news), and connection. Listeners indicate that radio presenters act as a surrogate friend in their home, whereby the listener feels that they are part of a conversation taking place. They establish perceived relationships with presenters such that a change of presenter or program is met with mourning or an adjustment period. Having consistent engagement with presenters and programs of choice appear to be associated with listener enjoyment and comfort. Project findings will be contextualised against data collected via interviews with radio presenters to consider what synergies exist. Additionally, broader implications regarding radio listening for well-being in agedcare settings and healthy ageing policies will be discussed.
This study explores people's contemporary (and technologically-mediated) listening practices whil... more This study explores people's contemporary (and technologically-mediated) listening practices while accounting for the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. It extends our previous work (Krause et al., 2021) which explored young adults' consideration of the value of music listening. Previously, almost one-third of participants stated that music listening was an activity they valued and appreciated because of its beauty and/or the enjoyment they received from listening, suggesting respondents placed value in music listening as a 'means in and of itself'-a phrase supported by philosophical and ethical considerations of intrinsic value. Our previous data acknowledged music's intrinsic value, irrespective of tandem extrinsic motivations they may have had for using music to fulfill various functions. Recent studies have found that during the COVID-19 pandemic, young adults consumed more media content (music listening, television, social media, video games) as a coping mechanism due to significant restrictions on movement. Therefore, in this study we interrogate whether the value young adults attribute to music listening has changed during the pandemic, and if so, how? We asked participants (N = 153; Mage = 19.74, SDage = 3.01) to complete an online survey. A thematic analysis of open-text survey responses is currently underway. These findings will advance our understanding not only of the impact of the pandemic, but also on how individual music listening practices and experiences are valued.
Background
Listening to music is a popular leisure activity. Investigations of music in everyday ... more Background Listening to music is a popular leisure activity. Investigations of music in everyday life are dominated by a functional perspective, drawn from work using the theory of Uses and Gratifications. In so doing, we may have neglected to fully appreciate the value people place on music listening. Therefore, the present study considered if, and why, people value music listening and probed instances when they may not want to listen to music in everyday life. Aims This study considered if, and why, people value music listening and also probed instances when they may not want to listen to music in everyday life. This research was therefore guided by two questions: (1) How is the value of music listening expressed? and (2) Are there any times/situations when people do not want to listen to music? Methods A total of 319 university students residing in Australia (76.50% female, Mean age = 20.64 years) completed an online questionnaire. The majority of the sample considered themselves to be ‘non-musicians’; however, the sample reported listening to an average of three hours of music daily and considered music to be very important in their lives (Mean = 6.14 on a 7-point scale). Participants responded to open-ended questions directly addressing the two research questions and thematic analyses were conducted. Results Inductive thematic analysis yielded thirteen themes synthesising how participants valued listening to music, such as appreciation, emotion, time and engagement, cognitive factors and mood regulation. Reasons for not listening to music were summarised by eight themes dominated by interference with activities that required focus or concentration, followed by environmental context, affective responses, music engagement and inversely, a preference for silence or other auditory stimuli. Fifteen percent of participants stated there was never a time they did not want to listen to music. Conclusion and Implications By taking a macroscopic approach with the present research, we posit that Uses and Gratifications theory can be interpreted as inhabiting one of two branches of an axiological theory of value, with aesthetics on the other branch. Thus, while Uses and Gratifications is an appropriate framework to understand music listening from the perspective of ‘listening as valued as a means to an end’, it may be less able to interpret music listening’s worth when identified as ‘a means in and of itself’. It is worth noting, however, that within the axiological theory of value the two branches are not mutually exclusive; indeed, the distinction between means and ends is a fuzzy line. We posit that forms of musical engagement, such as music listening, can fall within this intersection.
Background Within the popular imagination, musical talent or ability is perceived to be genetic o... more Background Within the popular imagination, musical talent or ability is perceived to be genetic or innate (Rickard & Chin, 2017) and Western cultures tend to identify only those who actively create music through playing an instrument or singing as "musicians" (Hallam, 2017). The conflation of "musician" with ability and/or active music engagement through singing or playing is reflected in research considering musical identity, which has tended to focus on these connections. Where a broader concept of musical identity is deployed, in, for example, the context of music listening, research has narrowly focused on music genre preferences. Any conception of the "musician" identity, is, however, socially constructed; and little consideration has been given to broader sociocultural factors at play in musical identity formation, particularly as regards to cultural environment.
By 2057, close to one in four of the Australian population will be over 65. This developing agein... more By 2057, close to one in four of the Australian population will be over 65. This developing ageing population provides significant opportunities, such as intergenerational nurturance and long-term productivity. However, there are also many challenges associated with older age which can profoundly impact individuals, their families and society as they attempt to manage the burden of care. While the arts have been identified as a promising way to improve older adults’ well-being, evidence-driven knowledge is needed. Specifically, the radio needs to be considered as a potentially useful tool in promoting psychosocial well-being. This research examined how radio influences the lives of older listeners, by considering how listening habits relate to older listeners’ sense of well-being in particular. A total of 374 Australian residents (aged 61-93) completed an online questionnaire. Nearly the entire sample reported listening to the radio every day, for an average of four-five hours daily. Many individuals viewed the radio more as a companion than as simply background sound. Listening was largely motivated by preferences for programming, music, and the presenter. While individuals’ listening motivations were not associated with scores on measures of loneliness or satisfaction with life, a significant relationship was found between individuals’ depression score and the motivation to listen to the radio in order to shift one’s mood. Additional findings from analyses that considered associations between well-being and additional components of radio listening practices as well as other preferred leisure pursuits will be discussed. These findings have broad implications as to the impact that the radio can have on older listeners’ psychosocial well-being. As a long-standing, easy-to-use, non-pharmacological tool, the radio has great potential to positively impact quality of life. Future research can consider how radio personnel might use these findings in order to develop radio programming that specifically promotes emotional regulation, community, and well- being.
Background
Csikszentmihalyi defined the experience of flow as an absorption in one’s action(s) re... more Background Csikszentmihalyi defined the experience of flow as an absorption in one’s action(s) resulting in an enhanced quality of performance. Flow has been examined in multiple domains including performing arts genres such as dance, acting, and music. Music induces a flow experience, both for performers and listeners. To date, however, published studies have not investigated flow experienced by classical singing students in the context of live performance. Aims The present study investigated Australian tertiary classical voice students’ experience of flow in the context of a live staged performance. The work, Passion, Lament, Glory, was a pasticcio comprising Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, Handel’s Salve Regina and select choruses of Handel’s Messiah performed in St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne, VIC in 2017. The study aimed to identify which types of flow were more prevalent throughout the rehearsal/performance process, and to consider the impact flow has on intrinsic motivation among tertiary voice students as the result of live performing opportunities. Method Post-performance focus group interviews conducted with 10 participating student-performers enrolled at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music (aged 20-38 years, Mage = 22.8; 100% female) were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Emergent themes from the analysis were cross-referenced with Csikszentmihalyi’s nine criteria of flow (1. Challenge-Skill Balance- task difficulty and individual ability are matched, 2. Action-Awareness Merging- processes become automatic, 3. Clear Goals, 4. Unambiguous Feedback- evaluation is immediate and clear, 5. High Concentration, 6. Sense of Control, 7. Loss of Self-Consciousness- self- reflection and insecurity are absent, 8. Transformation of time- perception of time is distorted, 9. Autotelic experience- the activity is positively purposeful and fulfilling) as a means of categorising the data. Results The retrospective accounts of the project indicate that across the initial rehearsal period, students recounted a lack of clear goals and sense of control even though the director provided input and detailed production plans throughout this period. However, students reported a growing sense of clarity (Clear Goals) and Action-Awareness Merging when they recalled moving into the cathedral for the final rehearsals on a lighted stage, in costume. Performances signified the greatest instances of flow with regards to High Concentration, Unambiguous Feedback, and Loss of Self-Consciousness. Following the performance, participants reported an autotelic experience such as a strong sense of achievement and reward. Conclusions These findings highlight that the experience of peak flow is contained in performance itself, when a number of key active ingredients are in place: the task is expertly learned and executed, the setting and staging are in place, and the performers are in a heightened state of arousal in front of an audience. In contrast, students retrospectively reported being unfamiliar with the music and movement and not having experience in the performance context working against flow in early rehearsals. Thus, further work is required to clarify what opportunities for flow experiences may be possible in rehearsals. In vivo methodologies may be useful to explore lived experiences of flow and specifically consider how the creative imaginations of the performers may be enriched to promote peak flow experiences.
Background
A recent surge of research has begun to examine music investment and well-being; howev... more Background A recent surge of research has begun to examine music investment and well-being; however, researchers have noted that particular challenges associated with this work are to test and theorize the benefits of music to well-being. Thus, the current research used self-determination theory as a framework to consider the perceived benefits to well-being associated with musical participation.
Aims In particular, it considered the potential associations between basic psychological needs (namely, competence, relatedness, and autonomy), self-determined autonomous motivation, and the perceived benefits of well-being from musical participation, controlling for demographic variables and the musical activity parameters.
Method The sample consisted of 192 Australian residents (aged 17-85, Mage = 36.95; 63.50% female) who were currently involved in a musical activity at the time they participated in the research. Individuals completed an online questionnaire, which included demographic questions and measures of musical participation, an amended basic psychological needs scale and an amended version of the BREQ-2 to address musical participation specifically as well as Krause, North & Davidson’s (2018) measure of the social-psychological well-being benefits of musical participation. The well-being measure results in an overall score and five sub-scale scores addressing mood and coping, esteem and worth, socialization, cognition, and self-actualization dimensions of well-being.
Results Results indicated that females were more likely to perceive benefits to their well-being; and that how important an individual considers music in their life was positively related to perceived well-being. Importantly, the analyses also revealed that the basic needs of competency and relatedness were related to overall perceived well-being as well as specifically social, cognitive, and esteem dimensions of well-being. Autonomous motivation demonstrated significant associations with both the overall well-being score as well as four of five specific well-being subscales measured. The pattern of results reiterates the positive associations between musical participation and benefits to one’s emotional and social well-being, which have been highlighted in previous research.
Conclusions Collectively, these findings indicate that self-determination theory offers a useful theoretical framework to understand the relationship between musical participation and well-being. Further, the findings have broad implications for people who are involved in facilitating musical participation opportunities. In particular, the challenge for facilitators that arises concerns specifically how the y might foster self-perceptions of competence, relatedness, and autonomy in their participants. Indeed, future research is well placed to examine the particular pedagogical techniques that facilitators employ that will be perceived as needs-supporting, and, consequently, will promote longer-term musical participation.
Background: While research has broadly considered the wide-ranging intellectual, social, personal... more Background: While research has broadly considered the wide-ranging intellectual, social, personal, and physical benefits of active musical participation across the lifespan, there is little research that has focused specifically on how music educators can best promote participant investment inside school and beyond. The slim quantity of existing research that does consider recruitment and retention for musical participation has been limited focusing, for instance, on single points in time such as the transition from elementary to secondary school. However, with increasing evidence supporting musical participation for health and wellbeing benefit, it is important to consider how music facilitators can promote continued participation. Aims: In the context above, the present research, specifically aimed to: (I) Investigate what constitutes best practice in music education, focusing on skills to facilitate on-going engagement in music, and (II) Explore these practices within a range of cultural and pedagogical contexts. Method: The present study was based on interviews with leading European and Australian music educator-research experts from within a secondary school system as well as tertiary institutions. The data collection focused on the participants’ reflections of their own practice and beliefs. Semi-structured interviews began by asking the main research questions, but also allowed for deeper exploration tailored to each participant’s experience. Following transcription of the interviews, a qualitative interpretative phenomenological analysis was performed. Results: Emergent areas of interest included the knowledge and skills involved in teaching music, education philosophy and pedagogy, the support of one’s peers, supervisors and school and local community, and past personal experience. It was clear that interviewees were deeply influenced by local/national cultural trends and that some had to counteract the myth that not everyone is/can be musical, while others were able to amplify positive cultural beliefs around music’s value to culture. Further, new/beginning music educators needed to think beyond the structure of their own music education to provide more culturally diverse educational experiences for their students. Findings provide evidence that: developing autonomous engagement can generate personal meaning and value in music, which translates to deeper, longer musical investment; students need to feel competent in their participation; and students need to have a strong sense of affiliation and social connectedness in their activities. Thus, the evidence supports adopting the theory of self-determination, which is based around the satisfaction of specific psychological needs (connectedness, autonomy, and competency), leading to positive motivation, development, and well-being. Conclusions: The study revealed that the educators needed to create environments in which they could work in simultaneous roles as facilitators and co-producers guiding their students in their pursuits in learner-centred and even learner-directed environments. Indeed, the relevancy of self-determination theory argues for a shift away from the prevailing music pedagogical practices, based centrally on expertise training, to an acute appreciation of connectedness, autonomy, and competency, which will promote sustained investment in musical activities.
Background - Designed to appease the desire to listen to music freely and conveniently, music str... more Background - Designed to appease the desire to listen to music freely and conveniently, music streaming services such as Spotify are exceptionally popular nowadays. Yet, music piracy remains prevalent. Assuming a psychological perspective, the present study considers why people might choose to engage in music piracy (the practice of illegally sourcing music) when so many popular and varied legal services now exist. Aims - The present study considered the relationship between music piracy and broader musical engagement practices. In particular it addressed two research questions: (RQ1) beyond demographics, can psychological concepts (i.e., personality and identity) as well as music engagement (i.e., listening engagement and format use) explain piracy attitudes; and (RQ2) are the uses and gratifications associated with one’s preferred format related to piracy attitudes? Method - Three hundred and ninety six USA, UK, and Australian residents (38.60% USA, 26.50% UK, 34.80% Australia) completed an online questionnaire. Ages ranged from 16-71 years (M = 34.53, Mdn = 20, SD = 8.98); 71.00% of the sample was female, 28.00% was male, and 1.00% of participants identified as ‘custom’. Participants completed Brown and MacDonald’s (2014) Attitudes Towards Music Piracy (AMP-12) scale, Langford’s (2003) short five-item personality questionnaire, Brown and Krause’s (2016) 49 Format Uses and Gratifications Item measure, and Krause and North’s (2016) music-technology identity measure. Additionally, participants indicated the format they used most often to listen to music (of six formats: physical (i.e., CD, vinyl, cassette), digital files (i.e., mp3), free digital streaming, paid-for digital streaming, radio, and live music); indicated how important they consider music in their lives; and estimated how many hours they listen to music daily. Individuals also reported their age, gender, whether they held a University qualification, and their country of residence. Results - RQ1: The Generalized Linear Mixed Method analysis that considered whether psychological constructs and music engagement variables accounted for music piracy attitudes was statistically significant, F (15, 366) = 4.391, p < .001, np2 = .050. In particular, conscientiousness was negatively associated with the AMP score, such that that those individuals favouring music piracy were easy-going and disorderly. Post-hoc pairwise comparisons revealed that males demonstrated more favorable piracy attitudes than females (β = 0.234 [0.069, 0.399], t (366) = 2.785, p = .006, η2 = .021). Moreover, individuals using digital files and paid-for streaming services were significantly more likely to endorse positive piracy attitudes than those using physical formats; and users of free streaming services were significantly more likely to endorse more favorable piracy attitudes than users of physical formats, digital files, and the radio. RQ2: The generalized linear mixed method analysis that considered how the eight format uses and gratification dimensions related to piracy attitudes was statistically significant, F (8, 283) = 5.715, p < .001, np2 = .079. In particular, the value for money dimension was positively associated with more favorable piracy attitudes, while the connection uses and gratification dimension (characterized by emotionally connecting with music) was negatively associated with favorable piracy attitudes. Conclusions - The associations between positive piracy attitudes and being male and expressing low levels of conscientiousness replicate findings reported elsewhere (Brown & MacDonald, 2014). The preference for accessing music digitally was also associated with engagement in music piracy, suggesting that even the seemingly-infinite catalogues of on-demand music are not enough to deter music piracy. Furthermore, with regard to uses and gratifications, results suggest that music piracy is driven by a perception that buying music is poor value for money, rather than a reluctance to pay altogether. From a policy perspective, future research could seek to establish what it is that drives perceptions of value for money in relation to music consumption practices.
Research has increasingly focused on the relationship between music and alcohol usage behaviors (... more Research has increasingly focused on the relationship between music and alcohol usage behaviors (e.g.,
Investigations of musical activities for wellbeing impact have grown exponentially over the past ... more Investigations of musical activities for wellbeing impact have grown exponentially over the past decade. Existing work has shown positive short-term impact, yet researchers remain unclear about how music operates for these outcomes. In addition, evidence-based investigations of the long-term potentials of musical participation are scant.
Fostering group singing as a means of improving social connectivity within socially marginalized ... more Fostering group singing as a means of improving social connectivity within socially marginalized groups is now a well-established and widely reported practice. Investigating well-being related aspects of how such choirs function internally and in interaction with the broader community, this chapter purposefully expands the scope of the existing discourse on music and well-being. It emphasizes the powerful role of emotion in a choir’s expansion and growth and explores the singing group as a forum—a conceptual, specifically musical, emotional, and physical refuge—within which to build confidence and express voice. Two case study choirs are presented: a chorus of same-sex-attracted and gender-diverse young adults, and a community choir for older people. Interview data highlight the importance of in-group and community-focused experiences and the potential for such choirs to affirm personal and social experiences and provide opportunities for growth.
Classical music futures: Practices of innovation , 2024
The COVID-19 pandemic introduced audiences to new ways of engaging with artistic performance in a... more The COVID-19 pandemic introduced audiences to new ways of engaging with artistic performance in an online environment (Rendell, 2020, terms this ‘pandemic media’). Multiple performers and organisations transferred live performances into a recorded or livestreamed format. However, at present, there is little research to support decisions that organisations may make in terms of how they do this, and what they deem to be important in how they record and / or stream. There is evidence to support the value of ‘liveness’ in music performance (Tsangaris, 2020), but what is this, and can it be replicated in online environment?
This chapter will outline existing research regarding concepts such as liveness in music performance. The study discussed in the chapter will also discuss research regarding the live music experience as a social one, and the vital role that sharing musical spaces plays in social bonding and group coherence. This study examines questions including what listeners perceive to be the main differences between live and livestreamed attendance at music performance, and what constitutes ‘liveness’ in such performances. Data analysis suggests that audiences may have different motivations to attend live versus livestreamed performances, with the former being associated with having fun and a good night out, and shared experience, and the latter often about using time in a meaningful way and the sound quality available in livestreamed attendance at an event. ‘Liveness’ involves not only such factors as the opportunity to share an experience and interact with other audience members and performers, but also the sense of atmosphere, immersion, sensory experiences, and being physically present. When asked about the advantages and disadvantages of attending a livestreamed performance, audience members cite factors common to both live and online experiences such as the logistics, and whether they are with other people or not. However, a thematic analysis also reveals differences in what people see as the advantages and disadvantages of attending online, such as the emotional response to a live performance, and considerations around accessibility and the impact on the environment for online experiences. There is an urgent need in the music industry to better understand what the essential elements of a live performance are, and whether these aspects need to be, and indeed can be replicated in a livestreamed event, for example in terms of level of sound quality and emotional response.
The chamber musician in the twenty-first century. , 2022
The literature and case study data presented in this chapter explore the micro- (interpersonal) a... more The literature and case study data presented in this chapter explore the micro- (interpersonal) and macro-level (organisational/cultural) experiences between professional chamber musicians, the venues that engage them, and the audiences in attendance. They are explored in terms of a series of transactions—acts of giving and receiving and embracing the need to compromise. From this perspective, emergent themes include the delicate balancing of economic, esteem, and diversification values for both performers and venue in planning; music cohesion and interpersonal social interaction as important at all levels and across all stages of planning and executing performances; and considerations of the balance between familiar and novel encounters, informality, and experiences of social inclusion regarding interactions amongst performers and audience members. It is clear that both specific and subtle transactions shape the motivations, planning, and execution of ensemble performances. While stakeholders all inevitably have different and varied experiences, their transactions contribute to the virtuous cycle of the embedded environmental social, cultural, material, and technological factors and the action afforded that constitutes chamber music performance. The “art of ensemble performance” seems to be a distributed process that is dependent on critical interdependent transactions amongst all stakeholders.
Music, health, and wellbeing: Exploring music for health and social justice, 2018
Engagement in music, both with respect to listening and playing, has been found to have a positiv... more Engagement in music, both with respect to listening and playing, has been found to have a positive role to play in everyday well-being. This chapter explores the specific well-being benefits that diverse forms of musical engagement can promote from the particular perspective of the social and applied psychology of music. Specifically, this chapter surveys recent social-psychological literature broadly, and the authors also draw from their own research offering case studies to highlight research evidence concerning health and well-being benefits when applying a social-psychological lens to music research. When discussing the effects of listening to music, the authors focus on the influence of newer, digital technologies for promoting self-regulation, such as mood management via playlists; and when discussing making music, the authors point to the range of benefits across types of well-being from music participation and also consider the role of music facilitators and educators with respect to promoting sustained musical investment and well-being. Relevant influences range from micro- to meso-level determinants, interacting across the levels to influence our experiences everyday. Further, the authors also discuss pertinent theories that show promising application for future research that addresses health and well-being from a social and applied music psychology perspective, including the Reciprocal feedback model, Mehrabian and Russell’s Pleasure-Arousal-Dominance model, the PERMA model of well-being, and the Music listening goals framework. To conclude, the chapter reveals that music offers much in terms of socio-emotional experience for well-being benefit.
The chapter adopts a broad approach, situating music piracy in a wider context of how and why peo... more The chapter adopts a broad approach, situating music piracy in a wider context of how and why people listen to and engage with music, given that questions concerning music piracy engagement hinges on understanding why people listen to music in the first place. Technology has changed how we choose and listen to music, and recent music psychology research explores the cultural as well as commercial impact of the digital revolution on contemporary music listening practices. Working from a social psychological perspective, this chapter provides an overview of why individuals choose to engage in music piracy, encompassing a discussion concerning the personality and individual differences of so-called music pirates. Acknowledging the wide-reaching impact of the digital revolution and music piracy on music listening practices, this chapter discusses the impact on the live music sector as well as the emerging omnipresence of streaming services. Discussion follows which unpacks the different functions which particular music formats satisfy, working from recent empirical data; the implications of which pertain to why people choose one format over another, as well as whether they choose to pay for music or not. Lastly, the chapter concludes
Oxford handbook of music psychology - second edition, Jan 2016
This chapter opens with a brief account of three meta-analyses of studies of the effects of backg... more This chapter opens with a brief account of three meta-analyses of studies of the effects of background music, one of which looks specifically at its effects in retail settings. It next outlines the main theoretical explanations of these effects, namely the effects of music on physiological arousal, on the priming of certain thoughts and associations, and on its influence through its emotional effects. It also considers a fourth mechanism identified in some of the authors’ own recent research on the effects of the listener’s degree of dominance and control over the music. The remainder of the chapter is a brief review, largely based on the authors’ own work, of three main areas of research on music and consumer behavior, namely that on the perception of the commercial environment, on product choice and musical fit, and on the speed of activity and time perception.
The chapter adopts a broad approach, situating music piracy in a wider context of how and why peo... more The chapter adopts a broad approach, situating music piracy in a wider context of how and why people listen to and engage with music, given that questions concerning music piracy engagement hinges on understanding why people listen to music in the first place. Technology has changed how we choose and listen to music, and recent music psychology research explores the cultural as well as commercial impact of the digital revolution on contemporary music listening practices. Working from a social psychological perspective, this chapter provides an overview of why individuals choose to engage in music piracy, encompassing a discussion concerning the personality and individual differences of so-called music pirates. Acknowledging the wide-reaching impact of the digital revolution and music piracy on music listening practices, this chapter discusses the impact on the live music sector as well as the emerging omnipresence of streaming services. Discussion follows which unpacks the different functions which particular music formats satisfy, working from recent empirical data; the implications of which pertain to why people choose one format over another, as well as whether they choose to pay for music or not. Lastly, the chapter concludes by proposing directions for future research based on the findings from recent empirical work.
International journal of applied positive psychology, Apr 19, 2023
In this study, we sought to develop-and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived ... more In this study, we sought to develop-and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived from-a new Psychological Flow Scale (PFS). We propose a parsimonious model of three core dimensions of flow, reflecting the findings from a recent scoping review that synthesised flow research across scientific disciplines. The validation process for the PFS addressed recent conceptual criticisms of flow science regarding construct validity, theoretical compatibility, relational ambiguity, and definitional inconsistency. An initial review and analysis of the many flow measurements that exist found that these instruments either assess one, some, or none of the three core-dimensions of flow; often measuring similar dimensions that may bear resemblance to one of the three-dimensions but differ in dimensional meaning. PFS item development involved a phase of theoretical scrutiny, review of existing instruments, item generation, and expert review of items. Subsequently, 936 participants were recruited for scale development purposes, which included sample testing, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. This factor analytic process showed evidence for three distinguishable dimensions 'under' a single general or higher-order factor (i.e., global flow). With respect to external aspects of validity, flow scores correlated positively with perceptions of competence, self-rated performance, autotelic personality, and negatively with anxiety and stress scores. In conclusion, we present preliminary evidence for the theoretical and operational Public Significance Statement This article presents evidence of validity for a new Psychological Flow Scale (PFS) that assesses the core aspects of the flow state, and has been designed to be utilized across domains and scientific disciplines. Confirmatory findings suggest that the response scale is a suitable fit to assess flow globally, whilst the dimensions of absorption, effortless control, and intrinsic reward can be assessed by the three subscales. Flow scores correlated positively with perceptions of competence, self-rated performance, autotelic personality; and correlated negatively with anxiety and stress. The article offers suggestions regarding important aspects of flow measurement.
Everyday stressors-the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday li... more Everyday stressors-the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday life-are common. The present research examined the relationship between everyday stressors and the use of music listening as a coping mechanism. In particular, it examined the use of music listening to cope with different types of everyday stressor and examined the relationship between this usage and listener characteristics, including demographics and music engagement style. Participants in the USA, Australia, and Malaysia (N =553) completed an online survey. A factor analysis was used to identify five types of everyday stressor: Social, Financial, Performance Responsibilities, Workrelated, and Daily Displeasures. Individuals listened to music significantly more often to cope with social and work-related stressors than performance responsibilities and daily displeasures. Moreover, individuals who demonstrated a stronger affective listening style and those who reported listening to music for emotion/problem-orientated and avoidance/disengagement reasons were found to listen to music most often to cope with everyday stressors. These findings have implications, for both listeners and health professionals, when considering how music listening can be used as a self-administered tool for coping with everyday stressors.
International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology
In this study, we sought to develop—and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived ... more In this study, we sought to develop—and provide preliminary validity evidence for scores derived from—a new Psychological Flow Scale (PFS). We propose a parsimonious model of three core dimensions of flow, reflecting the findings from a recent scoping review that synthesised flow research across scientific disciplines. The validation process for the PFS addressed recent conceptual criticisms of flow science regarding construct validity, theoretical compatibility, relational ambiguity, and definitional inconsistency. An initial review and analysis of the many flow measurements that exist found that these instruments either assess one, some, or none of the three core-dimensions of flow; often measuring similar dimensions that may bear resemblance to one of the three-dimensions but differ in dimensional meaning. PFS item development involved a phase of theoretical scrutiny, review of existing instruments, item generation, and expert review of items. Subsequently, 936 participants were ...
Everyday stressors—the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday li... more Everyday stressors—the irritating and disturbing events that happen in the context of everyday life—are common. The present research examined the relationship between everyday stressors and the use of music listening as a coping mechanism. In particular, it examined the use of music listening to cope with different types of everyday stressor and examined the relationship between this usage and listener characteristics, including demographics and music engagement style. Participants in the USA, Australia, and Malaysia ( N =553) completed an online survey. A factor analysis was used to identify five types of everyday stressor: Social, Financial, Performance Responsibilities, Work-related, and Daily Displeasures. Individuals listened to music significantly more often to cope with social and work-related stressors than performance responsibilities and daily displeasures. Moreover, individuals who demonstrated a stronger affective listening style and those who reported listening to music...
With so many formats available for individuals to use to listen to music, the present research ad... more With so many formats available for individuals to use to listen to music, the present research adopted a Uses and Gratifications approach to investigate why people prefer particular formats. Specifically, the present study considered six formats: physical, digital file, freestreaming, paid-for streaming, radio, live music. A sample of 396 people (M age = 34.53) completed an online survey, detailing the reasoning for their favourite format via a free-text response. Live music and digital files were the most popular formats. A thematic analysis of the uses and gratifications pertaining to each format highlighted how participants were attuned to the advantages (and disadvantages) of different formats, demonstrating an awareness of, and consideration relative to, rival formats. Findings suggest that choosing to listen to music across different formats may satisfy different needs, and that people demonstrate an awareness of their preference relative to the other available options.
With many ways for consumers to access and consume music, little is known about why people choose... more With many ways for consumers to access and consume music, little is known about why people choose to listen to music via one format over another. Using a uses and gratifications approach, the present research used an online questionnaire ( N = 396) to examine people’s format use, concerning six particular formats. The results suggest that eight dimensions, namely, usability and intention to use, discovery, functional utility, flexibility, connection, social norms, value for money, and playback diversity, define the uses and gratifications that particular formats serve. When considering whether format use was related to broader music engagement behaviors, results indicated different associations between music engagement variables and format use suggesting that different formats allow listeners to engage with music in unique ways. Findings have implications for future research that examines how and why people engage with music listening in everyday life, elaborating further our unders...
The digital revolution has changed how consumers engage with music. The present study explored th... more The digital revolution has changed how consumers engage with music. The present study explored the potential psychological factors underpinning why many consumers engage in music piracy. 396 participants (71.00% female, M age = 34.53) completed an online questionnaire. Preference for accessing music digitally was associated with more favorable attitudes towards music piracy, as was being male, and expressing low levels of conscientiousness. Concerning the uses and gratifications of using different formats to engage with music, music piracy was found to be a financially viable way of listening to music. Discussion focuses on the notion that recorded music is perceived as poor value for money, and this is considered distinct from the widespread perception that piracy is simply about getting free music.
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Journal Articles by Amanda E Krause
study, Listen Up, run by Indigo Project, a mental health organization in Sydney, Australia, in which we explored relationships between participants’ responses to the experience and their demographics and
styles of music engagement. A sample of 187 Australian residents (aged 20–64years) who attended Listen Up completed a survey measuring music engagement; emotional responses to the experience; perceived
outcomes of the session; pre- and post-measures of stress, mood, and anxiety; and free-text responses to questions concerning their experiences of listening mindfully and any thoughts or feelings that arose during the session. Participants experienced an increased mood and decreased levels of stress and arousal after taking part in Listen Up. Their focused-listening experiences were not simply characterized by enjoying
the music; rather, the emotions evoked were varied and complex. We characterized their emotional responses as negative, positive, evocative and expressive, and sad; in addition, participants characterized their own experiences as a cathartic journey resolving into a positive, peaceful, and calm state. Reported outcomes of participating in Listen Up included experiences described as being emotionally challenging, therapeutic, and physically uncomfortable. An affective music engagement style was positively associated with evocative and expressive and sad emotional experiences, and therapeutic outcomes. As a focused listening experience, Listen Up provides participants with the opportunity not only to attend to music but also to reflect on and process their personal thoughts and feelings. This research provides evidence for the emotional and mental health benefits of focused music listening, such that, focused listening reflects opportunities for strong experiences with music in today’s listening landscape.
Study Design and Methods. A between-subjects, online experiment was used. A sample of 212 individuals (Mage = 33.14; 69.30% female) participated in the study. After completing a background section, participants were randomly allocated into one of the experimental conditions (hearing one of four versions of a well-known song: a control version with piano and no singing, amateur singing, professional plain singing, and professional singing in the style of reality television singing). Participants were then asked to judge the performance they heard and to respond to items concerning their singing self-concept (including singing ability).
Results and Conclusions. A series of ANCOVAs was used to examine the impact of the experimental condition on the participants’ performance judgments and singing self-concept. The amateur singing was judged as the lowest quality. While there was no significant difference by experimental condition regarding possessing good singing ability, the experimental condition did affect people’s singing aspirations and perceived ability to sing along with the performers. The pattern of results suggests that exposure to reality television-style singing may have negative impacts on people’s singing self-concept via upward social comparison. Self-concept has been identified as an important predictor of musical engagement and participation and plays a role in motivating action. These results encourage music educators, singing voice pedagogues, and community musicians seeking to promote musical and singing participation to be aware of cultural influences on an individual’s singing self-concept.
study, Listen Up, run by Indigo Project, a mental health organization in Sydney, Australia, in which we explored relationships between participants’ responses to the experience and their demographics and
styles of music engagement. A sample of 187 Australian residents (aged 20–64years) who attended Listen Up completed a survey measuring music engagement; emotional responses to the experience; perceived
outcomes of the session; pre- and post-measures of stress, mood, and anxiety; and free-text responses to questions concerning their experiences of listening mindfully and any thoughts or feelings that arose during the session. Participants experienced an increased mood and decreased levels of stress and arousal after taking part in Listen Up. Their focused-listening experiences were not simply characterized by enjoying
the music; rather, the emotions evoked were varied and complex. We characterized their emotional responses as negative, positive, evocative and expressive, and sad; in addition, participants characterized their own experiences as a cathartic journey resolving into a positive, peaceful, and calm state. Reported outcomes of participating in Listen Up included experiences described as being emotionally challenging, therapeutic, and physically uncomfortable. An affective music engagement style was positively associated with evocative and expressive and sad emotional experiences, and therapeutic outcomes. As a focused listening experience, Listen Up provides participants with the opportunity not only to attend to music but also to reflect on and process their personal thoughts and feelings. This research provides evidence for the emotional and mental health benefits of focused music listening, such that, focused listening reflects opportunities for strong experiences with music in today’s listening landscape.
Study Design and Methods. A between-subjects, online experiment was used. A sample of 212 individuals (Mage = 33.14; 69.30% female) participated in the study. After completing a background section, participants were randomly allocated into one of the experimental conditions (hearing one of four versions of a well-known song: a control version with piano and no singing, amateur singing, professional plain singing, and professional singing in the style of reality television singing). Participants were then asked to judge the performance they heard and to respond to items concerning their singing self-concept (including singing ability).
Results and Conclusions. A series of ANCOVAs was used to examine the impact of the experimental condition on the participants’ performance judgments and singing self-concept. The amateur singing was judged as the lowest quality. While there was no significant difference by experimental condition regarding possessing good singing ability, the experimental condition did affect people’s singing aspirations and perceived ability to sing along with the performers. The pattern of results suggests that exposure to reality television-style singing may have negative impacts on people’s singing self-concept via upward social comparison. Self-concept has been identified as an important predictor of musical engagement and participation and plays a role in motivating action. These results encourage music educators, singing voice pedagogues, and community musicians seeking to promote musical and singing participation to be aware of cultural influences on an individual’s singing self-concept.
In this presentation, we will consider how the radio might be used as a free and widely accessible tool for promoting social connection and, thus, quality of life. Specifically, we will draw on our recent research on radio engagement for older adult well-being as a case study. From interviews and focus-groups conducted with radio personnel and older adult listeners, results indicate that radio acts as a social surrogate in people’s lives, proving information, entertainment, and companionship. Radio presenters keep listeners company through perceived relationships, built and sustained over time, that facilitate a sense of friendship as well as connection with the greater community. This underpins the radio’s ability to support listener well-being. Findings have implications for discussions on creatively promoting the well-being of individuals and communities in cost effective and accessible ways.
important to defining themselves. In previous research, it has been noted that individuals consider a wide range
of musical experiences and activities as factoring into their musical identity. Can the same be said for a
scientific identity? This research considers factors influencing people’s musical and scientific identity and sets out to specifically compare music- and science-based identities. With data collection underway, the SEMPRE conference presentation will discuss preliminary findings from the research project’s first phase in order to further develop the remaining project phases.
Most research on correlates of music preference considers micro-level influences, such as personality and social positional levels (Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003; North & Hargreaves, 1996). However, it is important to consider macro-level influences, such as cultural norms and the effects of time and weather, as well. An interesting macro-level influence that is gaining research attention is the consideration of seasonal effects (Helmholz, et al., 2017; Krause & North, 2018; Park, et al., 2019). For example, Krause and North’s (2018, p. 89) research demonstrated that listeners preferred “arousing music for the warmer months, serene music for spring, and melancholy music for the cooler months”.
Aims
The present study is a replication-extension study of Krause and North’s (2018) research. The aims of the present study included:
1. Replicating their findings drawing on a larger, global sample (including non-western countries and those with varying weather patterns and at different latitudes).
2. Exploring the extent that proxies for country and seasons (latitude) modulate response patterns.
Method
A total of 2,140 participants from 47 countries across 4 continents completed an online questionnaire, which consisted of answering background questions and responding to a series of questions concerning the creation of music playlists. Importantly, as in Krause and North (2018), participants rated how well 24 adjectives (from three factors: Arousing, Serene, and Melancholy) describe preferred music for playlists (for each season); also, they indicated their favourite season, the season they were currently experiencing, and their country of residence.
Results
Addressing the first aim, an exploratory factor analyses was conducted on the participants' adjective ratings to replicate that reported in Krause and North (2018). The results indicated that the proposed three factor solution on each of the four seasons from Autumn to Summer does not fit the data well using either the Comparitive Fit Index (0.79, 0.79, 0.81, 0.83) or Tucker Lewis Index (0.83, 0.83, 0.84, 0.86). We posit this model fit incongrunacy is due to initial model specification choices. Nevertheless, we continued our planned analyses and considered the impact of the participants’ country of residence. We tested the hypothesis that preferred arousal levels in music fluctuate according to the ecological environment: could countries with warmer summers prefer higher arousal music for warmer (summer) seasons, and countries with colder winters prefer lower arousal (melancholic) music for cooler (winter) seasons? Using mixed effects models with random effects for country, we found that countries with more extreme latitudes (warmer summers) preferred higher arousal music (b = -0.05, p = .036) for summer. However, no significant effect was observed for latitude and low arousal (melancholic) music (b = -0.03, p = .11).
Conclusions
By examining the replicability of Krause and North's (2018) findings on a larger set of participants and countries, the present research contributes to the developing body of psychological research on music preference at the macro-level, focusing on contributing to our understanding of how broader factors play a role in music preference and everyday listening behaviours. Moreover, the findings will be considered relative to research concerning seasonal variations in other behaviours and experiences, which may have additional influences on areas such as financial behaviours, aggression, mental health, and mood.
Proprioception is considered essential to forming an aesthetic vocal experience, particularly musculoskeletal proprioception or the ability to accurately sense position, movement, effort, muscular tension, sensation of posture, and balance when singing. Research into singing reveals that proprioceptive awareness leads to better coordination and enhances the singer’s overall understanding of their vocal function. While proprioception is also considered useful in vocal pedagogy, few studies have examined if/how proprioception contributes to voice teaching in the one-to-one context.
Aims
This project sought to understand in what way proprioception featured in the practices of tertiary classical and music theatre voice teachers. It specifically aimed to: 1) identify ways in which voice teachers demonstrate proprioceptive awareness when discussing their practices; and 2) observe how, and for what purpose, voice teachers engage proprioception when delivering voice lessons.
Method
A multiple-case study design involved interviews with teachers and observations of their lessons. Voice teachers (N=7, all working in Australia), selected through purposive sampling, were interviewed face-to-face and each was observed delivering three lessons (N=21) to professionally focused singing students. Interview transcripts and observation field notes were analysed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis.
Results
Voice teachers revealed proprioceptive awareness when discussing their practices, such as sensing discomfort when a student sang with vocal tension. They also appeared to utilise proprioception as a diagnostic tool when addressing technical issues for their students. Further, teachers sought to develop proprioceptive awareness in their students through physical touch, verbal feedback, muscle release work, external tools (e.g., resistance bands), and breathwork. This was particularly evident where teachers focused students on how they felt when they were singing.
Conclusions
Voice teachers adopted a proprioceptive style of teaching, literally adopting a ‘hands-on’ approach and also asking students to reflect on their own physical sensations rather than on the sounds they were making. Further, voice teachers were shown to be developing proprioceptive awareness in their students to aid in achieving the complex sensorimotor coordination required in singing.
Implications
These findings have implications regarding vocal pedagogy courses training voice teachers to incorporate proprioceptive awareness in their practices.
When children commence learning a musical instrument, they are introduced to a diverse range of skills from the cognitive,
expressive and psychomotor domains. Children’s capacity to adopt and integrate these musical skills can directly affect their progress and influence ongoing interest. However, as many of these skills are unfamiliar to the beginner musician, their development requires specialised support, deliberate attention and focussed practice. The outcomes of these learning processes can also be a critical to children’s future musical engagement. Children’s lived experience of musical instrument skill acquisition is rarely examined in music education research; therefore, the current paper adopts a novel case study approach to investigate how children perceive and manage musical skill development. Intrapersonal factors and interpersonal relationships including those with the teacher, who is the principal researcher, are also
examined.
Aims
1. To investigate seven-year-old children’s lived experience of cello skill development within the first 18-months of tuition.
2. To investigate how children’s musical skill development is affected by intrapersonal factors and interpersonal relationships.
3. To investigate how the experience and perceptions of skill development in early learning influences children’s longer-term
musical engagement.
Method
Through a longitudinal Action Research methodology, 14 seven-year-old children’s lived experiences of learning the cello were tracked across the first 18-months of tuition. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of interviews with the children and their parents were integrated with the teacher-researcher’s recorded observations from work with the children.
Results
During the early stages of learning, children prioritised the development of skills in one of the three learning domains and this was attributed to initial competencies and affinities at the beginner level. As tuition progressed, teaching and learning challenges included ensuring that all skill sets developed according to the children’s individual, differentiated needs. Central to this developmental process was how the children’s intrapersonal factors interacted with their interpersonal relationships to shape their learning behaviour at home and in the instrumental music studio. Regardless of skill level or ability, all of the children measured their process in musical skill development through critical evaluation of their sound production. The children’s sophisticated perception of sound included discerning nuanced difference in quality of tone, intonation, volume, fluency and timbre. Production of an ideal sound that integrated these qualities was described as an aspirational goal in practice and performance. Sound was perceived also by the children as a powerful conduit for self-expression and musical communication. In this context, musical skill development fulfilled children’s creative needs and satisfied their desire to be seen and hear by others as capable musicians. This result generated growth in the children’s sense of agency and autonomy.
When the complex process of skill attainment, sound production and musical expression was achieved successfully, students
experienced transformed representations of their internal selves that positively impacted their emotional states. These transformative experiences were linked to a close affinity with their cello and this was evidenced by the children’s use of language devices such as metaphor, simile, analogy and imaginative narrative to describe how skill development strengthened their bond with the instrument. Further, some children ascribed anthropomorphic traits to their instruments, defining them as a person or ally and assigning names and gender pronouns. Investigation of students’ learning over time indicated that children who experienced beneficial interpersonal growth and productive interpersonal relationships through musical skill development maintained active longer-term musical engagement. These children described imagining themselves in positive performance and learning environments in their projected musical futures. Taken together, the findings from this investigation of children’s perceptions of musical skill development highlight how instrumental music learning can profoundly affect children’s inner worlds. The breadth and depth of the experience contributed to the children’s enjoyment in engagement and affected motivation to continue with their musical development.
Conclusions
This research, conducted by the teacher as researcher, makes a unique contribution to the literature by identifying the importance of children’s perception of sound in the process of cognitive, physical and emotional engagement with musical skill development. It identifies how this can have a transformative effect on a child’s sense of self and influence their future musical engagement.
Implications
Monitoring children’s perception of sound production and its impact on musical expression in the development of skills in the three learning domains is integral to instrumental music teaching and fosters meaningful, ongoing engagement outcomes.
Professional chamber musicians, the venues that engage them and the audiences in attendance interact, deploying values related to artistic skill and endeavour, public engagement and entertainment, prestige and financial viability. Plans, actions and responses feed the scope, quality and outcomes of the experience and require in-depth understanding particularly as we grapple with the challenges COVID-19 presents to the live music performance ecology.
Aim
This study investigates the experiences of professional chamber ensembles as they encounter musical and social demands, manage communications and deliver performances in a concert series within a premier venue. It aims to offer insights into micro (interpersonal) and macro (organisational/cultural) experiences between musicians,
venue and audiences.
Method
Case study data come from 15 chamber ensembles (each comprising 2-5 players) participating in a concert series in a renowned Australian live music venue. These were first collected across 2019 and included: contextual information provided by the venue and the ensembles via email; field observations of the performances; and focus group discussions with performers, venue staff and audiences. Data were prepared (transcribed where necessary) and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Additional data have been collected following the first two waves of COVID-19, to offer insights into prospects for the ensembles and the venue entering the 2021 concert season.
Results
Emergent themes include the delicate balancing of economic, esteem and diversification values for both performers and venue in planning and accepting the work. Music cohesion offers a further point of emphasis, the ‘art of the ensemble’ being a key value for all stakeholders. A related theme of importance is interpersonal social interaction, at all levels and across all stages of planning and executing the performances. Pivotal factors surrounding the audience experience include depth of emotional experience, a balance between familiar and novel encounter, informality and experience of social inclusion.
Conclusion
Specific and often subtle transactions shape the motivations, planning and execution of ensemble performances. While stakeholders inevitably have different and varied experiences, their interactions are pivotal in determining satisfaction and continue the virtuous cycle of transactions that constitutes chamber music performance.
Implications
Fluid and responsive transactions seemingly sustain stakeholders in seeking routes to realise a ‘Covid Normal’ future in which the culture of ensemble performance can continue, now to be moderated using socially distanced, no-interval live performance and online variants suitable for potential lockdowns.
We shall report on the challenges and benefits of conducting community action research. Reflective examination of members’ experiences, research practices, and project materials resulted in five themes which will be discussed: the process of implementing a University-approved research component within the playgroup’s organic paradigm; the various challenges and solutions concerning building engagement in the project and community; navigating varying stakeholder desires, including a focus on culturally inclusive practices and the role of music (and food) in the playgroup; facilitation challenges and un-anticipated acts of participant leadership; and concerns regarding funding and sustainability. The findings have implications for community music programs as well as community- and service-focused music education programs.
This presentation will discuss the results of a recent empirical investigation aimed at comparing the impact and benefit of implementing two different, technology-driven listening programs in order to promote psychosocial well-being in aged-care residents. Australian residents (aged 65+) living in two Mornington (VIC) care facilities participated in a two-month trial. Participants experienced one of two program conditions, facilitated by a music therapist: (1) individualized, one-to-one sessions centred around developing and using a personalized multi-media playlist or (2) small group sessions centred around listening to and discussing purpose-built radio programming. Interviews and surveys completed at the 0-, 1-, and 2-month timepoints collected data on the participants’ listening activities, session experiences, and well- being. Additional focus groups were held with facility staff in order to consider the programs with regard to their implementation and sustainability as well as the perceived impact on the residents. The findings discussed will provide an in-depth understanding of how everyday music listening activities in residential aged-care can assist older Australians’ psychosocial well-being, with broad implications concerning how everyday music listening can be used as a widely-accessed, low-cost tool for enhancing quality of later life. These findings and future work can lead to the development of evidence-based guidelines to support reproducible and sustainable programming guidelines that can be used to promote emotional regulation, community, and well-being.
We shall report on the challenges of conducting community action research. This includes discussing the process of implementing a research component within the playgroup’s organic development and paradigm which complied with stringent University ethical procedures and timelines yet addressed the needs of a community partner. Through reflective examination of members’ experiences, research practices, and project materials, the discussion will also address the various challenges and solutions concerning building engagement in the project and community, navigating varying stakeholder desires, as well as funding and sustainability concerns. The findings have implications for community music programs as well as community- and service-focused music education programs.
opportunities; however, there are also many challenges associated with older age which can profoundly impact individuals, their families and
society as they attempt to manage the burden of care. While music has been identified as a promising way to improve older adults’ well-being, we
have undertaken research to consider how the radio may be a useful tool in promoting psychosocial well-being.
Aims - This program of research aimed to examine how relationships built through radio engagement amongst listeners and presenters may
contribute to managing social and emotional challenges connected with older age. The project’s final aim was to develop a co-designed, evidence-based resource that would assist in disseminating the project’s findings to members of the community, radio stations, and aged care providers. Two guiding questions underpinned this research: How can stakeholders contribute to optimising the functionality of an evidence-based resource, and What design elements of the evidence-based resource effectively support the translation of research findings?
Method - A community-based, participatory research approach was adopted that supported equitable partnerships between researchers and
stakeholders. Brochure development was guided by a mixed-methods research design, and an iterative process of alternating rounds of feedback
(via surveys, interviews, and focus groups) and resource refinement. Stakeholder discussions centred on opinions and suggestions pertaining to the resource’s purpose, applicability, content, and design.
Results - The process describing the co-development of a brochure between university researchers and stakeholders will be outlined. With data collection still underway, thematic analyses of the focus group transcripts and resource drafts will identify themes concerning its content, design, applicability, and usability. Although, at times, challenging, working with co-designers and co-evaluators was productive and in line with person-centred care philosophy. Discussion of the findings will also address how collaborating with experts by experience represents a valuable approach for developing well-being research and resources.
Conclusions - The project findings have broad implications concerning the impact that the radio can have on older adults’ psychosocial well-being. Additionally, findings regarding the process of co-designing a resource to disseminate project results have implications for how to better conduct community-based participatory research and produce written health education materials.
Listening to music is a popular leisure activity. Investigations of music in everyday life are dominated by a functional perspective, drawn from work using the theory of Uses and Gratifications. In so doing, we may have neglected to fully appreciate the value people place on music listening. Therefore, the present study considered if, and why, people value music listening and probed instances when they may not want to listen to music in everyday life.
Aims
This study considered if, and why, people value music listening and also probed instances when they may not want to listen to music in everyday life. This research was therefore guided by two questions: (1) How is the value of music listening expressed? and (2) Are there any times/situations when people do not want to listen to music?
Methods
A total of 319 university students residing in Australia (76.50% female, Mean age = 20.64 years) completed an online questionnaire. The majority of the sample considered themselves to be ‘non-musicians’; however, the sample reported listening to an average of three hours of music daily and considered music to be very important in their lives (Mean = 6.14 on a 7-point scale). Participants responded to open-ended questions directly addressing the two research questions and thematic analyses were conducted.
Results
Inductive thematic analysis yielded thirteen themes synthesising how participants valued listening to music, such as appreciation, emotion, time and engagement, cognitive factors and mood regulation. Reasons for not listening to music were summarised by eight themes dominated by interference with activities that required focus or concentration, followed by environmental context, affective responses, music engagement and inversely, a preference for silence or other auditory stimuli. Fifteen percent of participants stated there was never a time they did not want to listen to music.
Conclusion and Implications
By taking a macroscopic approach with the present research, we posit that Uses and Gratifications theory can be interpreted as inhabiting one of two branches of an axiological theory of value, with aesthetics on the other branch. Thus, while Uses and Gratifications is an appropriate framework to understand music listening from the perspective of ‘listening as valued as a means to an end’, it may be less able to interpret music listening’s worth when identified as ‘a means in and of itself’. It is worth noting, however, that within the axiological theory of value the two branches are not mutually exclusive; indeed, the distinction between means and ends is a fuzzy line. We posit that forms of musical engagement, such as music listening, can fall within this intersection.
This research examined how radio influences the lives of older listeners, by considering how listening habits relate to older listeners’ sense of well-being in particular. A total of 374 Australian residents (aged 61-93) completed an online questionnaire. Nearly the entire sample reported listening to the radio every day, for an average of four-five hours daily. Many individuals viewed the radio more as a companion than as simply background sound. Listening was largely motivated by preferences for programming, music, and the presenter. While individuals’ listening motivations were not associated with scores on measures of loneliness or satisfaction with life, a significant relationship was found between individuals’ depression score and the motivation to listen to the radio in order to shift one’s mood. Additional findings from analyses that considered associations between well-being and additional components of radio listening practices as well as other preferred leisure pursuits will be discussed.
These findings have broad implications as to the impact that the radio can have on older listeners’ psychosocial well-being. As a long-standing, easy-to-use, non-pharmacological tool, the radio has great potential to positively impact quality of life. Future research can consider how radio personnel might use these findings in order to develop radio programming that specifically promotes emotional regulation, community, and well- being.
Csikszentmihalyi defined the experience of flow as an absorption in one’s action(s) resulting in an enhanced quality of performance. Flow has been examined in multiple domains including performing arts genres such as dance, acting, and music. Music induces a flow experience, both for performers and listeners. To date, however, published studies have not investigated flow experienced by classical singing students in the context of live performance.
Aims
The present study investigated Australian tertiary classical voice students’ experience of flow in the context of a live staged performance. The work, Passion, Lament, Glory, was a pasticcio comprising Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, Handel’s Salve Regina and select choruses of Handel’s Messiah performed in St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne, VIC in 2017. The study aimed to identify which types of flow were more prevalent throughout the rehearsal/performance process, and to consider the impact flow has on intrinsic motivation among tertiary voice students as the result of live performing opportunities.
Method
Post-performance focus group interviews conducted with 10 participating student-performers enrolled at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music (aged 20-38 years, Mage = 22.8; 100% female) were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Emergent themes from the analysis were cross-referenced with Csikszentmihalyi’s nine criteria of flow (1. Challenge-Skill Balance- task difficulty and individual ability are matched, 2. Action-Awareness Merging- processes become automatic, 3. Clear Goals, 4. Unambiguous Feedback- evaluation is immediate and clear, 5. High Concentration, 6. Sense of Control, 7. Loss of Self-Consciousness- self- reflection and insecurity are absent, 8. Transformation of time- perception of time is distorted, 9. Autotelic experience- the activity is positively purposeful and fulfilling) as a means of categorising the data.
Results
The retrospective accounts of the project indicate that across the initial rehearsal period, students recounted a lack of clear goals and sense of control even though the director provided input and detailed production plans throughout this period. However, students reported a growing sense of clarity (Clear Goals) and Action-Awareness Merging when they recalled moving into the cathedral for the final rehearsals on a lighted stage, in costume. Performances signified the greatest instances of flow with regards to High Concentration, Unambiguous Feedback, and Loss of Self-Consciousness. Following the performance, participants reported an autotelic experience such as a strong sense of achievement and reward.
Conclusions
These findings highlight that the experience of peak flow is contained in performance itself, when a number of key active ingredients are in place: the task is expertly learned and executed, the setting and staging are in place, and the performers are in a heightened state of arousal in front of an audience. In contrast, students retrospectively reported being unfamiliar with the music and movement and not having experience in the performance context working against flow in early rehearsals. Thus, further work is required to clarify what opportunities for flow experiences may be possible in rehearsals. In vivo methodologies may be useful to explore lived experiences of flow and specifically consider how the creative imaginations of the performers may be enriched to promote peak flow experiences.
A recent surge of research has begun to examine music investment and well-being; however, researchers have noted that particular challenges associated with this work are to test and theorize the benefits of music to well-being. Thus, the current research used self-determination theory as a framework to consider the perceived benefits to well-being associated with musical participation.
Aims
In particular, it considered the potential associations between basic psychological needs (namely, competence, relatedness, and autonomy), self-determined autonomous motivation, and the perceived benefits of well-being from musical participation, controlling for demographic variables and the musical activity parameters.
Method
The sample consisted of 192 Australian residents (aged 17-85, Mage = 36.95; 63.50% female) who were currently involved in a musical activity at the time they participated in the research. Individuals completed an online questionnaire, which included demographic questions and measures of musical participation, an amended basic psychological needs scale and an amended version of the BREQ-2 to address musical participation specifically as well as Krause, North & Davidson’s (2018) measure of the social-psychological well-being benefits of musical participation. The well-being measure results in an overall score and five sub-scale scores addressing mood and coping, esteem and worth, socialization, cognition, and self-actualization dimensions of well-being.
Results
Results indicated that females were more likely to perceive benefits to their well-being; and that how important an individual considers music in their life was positively related to perceived well-being. Importantly, the analyses also revealed that the basic needs of competency and relatedness were related to overall perceived well-being as well as specifically social, cognitive, and esteem dimensions of well-being. Autonomous motivation demonstrated significant associations with both the overall well-being score as well as four of five specific well-being subscales measured. The pattern of results reiterates the positive associations between musical participation and benefits to one’s emotional and social well-being, which have been highlighted in previous research.
Conclusions
Collectively, these findings indicate that self-determination theory offers a useful theoretical framework to understand the relationship between musical participation and well-being. Further, the findings have broad implications for people who are involved in facilitating musical participation opportunities. In particular, the challenge for facilitators that arises concerns specifically how the y might foster self-perceptions of competence, relatedness, and autonomy in their participants. Indeed, future research is well placed to examine the particular pedagogical techniques that facilitators employ that will be perceived as needs-supporting, and, consequently, will promote longer-term musical participation.
This chapter will outline existing research regarding concepts such as liveness in music performance. The study discussed in the chapter will also discuss research regarding the live music experience as a social one, and the vital role that sharing musical spaces plays in social bonding and group coherence. This study examines questions including what listeners perceive to be the main differences between live and livestreamed attendance at music performance, and what constitutes ‘liveness’ in such performances. Data analysis suggests that audiences may have different motivations to attend live versus livestreamed performances, with the former being associated with having fun and a good night out, and shared experience, and the latter often about using time in a meaningful way and the sound quality available in livestreamed attendance at an event. ‘Liveness’ involves not only such factors as the opportunity to share an experience and interact with other audience members and performers, but also the sense of atmosphere, immersion, sensory experiences, and being physically present. When asked about the advantages and disadvantages of attending a livestreamed performance, audience members cite factors common to both live and online experiences such as the logistics, and whether they are with other people or not. However, a thematic analysis also reveals differences in what people see as the advantages and disadvantages of attending online, such as the emotional response to a live performance, and considerations around accessibility and the impact on the environment for online experiences. There is an urgent need in the music industry to better understand what the essential elements of a live performance are, and whether these aspects need to be, and indeed can be replicated in a livestreamed event, for example in terms of level of sound quality and emotional response.