Emotional experiences of non-musically trained college students while improvising music in a group setting
Keyword
Research Subject Categories::HUMANITIES and RELIGION::Aesthetic subjects::MusicResearch Subject Categories::SOCIAL SCIENCES::Social sciences::Psychology
Music therapy -- Study and teaching
Music therapy -- Research
Date Published
2019-05Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of music improvisation on the emotional experiences of college students who have no previous music training. The participants (N=12) involved in this study consisted of college students, both male (n=5) and female (n=7), in both undergraduate and graduate programs. The participants were split into three groups, consisting of four participants in each group. Participants completed a questionnaire identifying their current emotional state, and then participated in a group music improvisation facilitated by the researcher. The participants then completed a second questionnaire to identify emotions they felt during and after the improvisation. Results indicated that music improvisation evoked more positive emotions in participants. In general, participants reported a decrease in negative emotions and an increase in positive emotions after participating in active music improvisation. Implications for this study include the use of music improvisation as a viable method in the field of music therapy to both elicit and modulate emotions within clients who have no musical training.Collections
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