Effects of Music Listening on Resilience, Self-Efficacy and Positivity in Healthy Young Adults

By : Uma Gupta, Vipin Kumar Singh

Page No: 1-24

Abstract
Objective: To examine the effects of listening to instrumental music in males and females on five measures related to the positive aspects of behavior namely resilience, self-efficacy, optimism, meaning in life and psychosocial flourishing, as well as to investigate gender differences in the music-induced effects on five dependent variables mentioned above. Methods: A three factorial design, gender (males and females) × treatments (music intervention and controlled condition) × testing sessions (pre-test and post-test) with repeated measures on the last factor, was used. The procedure was: pretreatment assessments on dependent variables ––– 20 days’ music intervention/ controlled condition – post-treatment assessments on dependent variables. Assessments were done by two trained assistants; one assistant carried out pretreatment assessments and presented intervention treatment, and the other assistant did post-treatment assessments. Participants’ response scores were analyzed by ANOVA. Results: Music listening significantly increased scores on resilience, self-efficacy, optimism, meaning in life and psychosocial flourishing in both males and females; led to significantly higher scores in females relative to males on all the dependent variables. For the controlled condition, males relative to females had higher scores on self-efficacy; gender differences for other dependent variables were statistically nonsignificant. Conclusion: Music’s potential of generating positive schemas can serve as an easily available resource to squeeze out positivity out of negativity and make life more happy, meaningful and fulfilling. The human strengths fostered by music listening may serve as buffers against increasing negativity in modern life.

Authors :
Uma Gupta : Professor & Head – Department of Siddhant Darshan, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India.
Vipin Kumar Singh : Ph.D. Scholar – Department of Siddhant Darshan, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India.
 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.32381/JPR.2020.15.01.1