Freeing the performer’s mind: A structural exploration of how mindfulness influences music performance anxiety, negative affect and self-consciousness among musicians
Raquel Rodríguez‐carvajal, Óscar Lecuona, Luz Sofía Vilte, Jennifer E. Moreno‐Jiménez, Sara de Rivas
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional study |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 151 |
| Population | Spanish-speaking music performers |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Key findings | The authors propose and find support for a structural model in which dispositional mindfulness inversely mediates the link between negative affect and music performance anxiety and inversely moderates the link between self-consciousness and music performance anxiety, suggesting mindfulness may buffer performers against career-damaging anxiety. |
Abstract
Music performing usually binds intense psychological experiences, from which music performance anxiety (MPA) is amongst the most damaging and pervasive ones. Alongside, some constructs seem to be associated with MPA, like negative affect and self-consciousness. In the interaction between these three elements, mindfulness seems to be an effective tool to cope with MPA by altering the relationships between it and self-consciousness or negative affect. In this study, a structural model is proposed following a cross-sectional design with a total of 151 spanish-speaking music performers. Results from a structural equation model seems to support the proposed model, making dispositional mindfulness an effective mechanism to alter the way MPA interacts with self-consciousness and negative affect. More specifically, dispositional mindfulness seems to inversely mediate the relationship between negative affect and MPA, while also inversely moderating the relationship between self-consciousness and MPA. In other words, dispositional mindfulness seems to prevent how self-conscious music performers can be or how negative is their mood into developing career-damaging MPA phenomena. Limitation of these findings are discussed, alongside future lines of work to improve the likelihood of this conclusions.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on anxiety, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychological flexibility mediates the relations between acute psychedelic effects and subjective decreases in depression and anxiety. International sample of people who reported having used a psychedelic | 2020 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 985 |
| The Challenging Experience Questionnaire: Characterization of challenging experiences with psilocybin mushrooms Internet survey respondents reporting challenging experiences with psilocybin | 2016 | Questionnaire development and validation | |
| Psychedelics and Mental Health: A Population Study Adult population in the United States | 2013 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 130,152 |
| Ecstasy/MDMA attributed problems reported by novice, moderate and heavy recreational users Ecstasy users who participated in a WWW study of recreational drug use | 2002 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 282 |
| 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used in a naturalistic group setting is associated with unintended improvements in depression and anxiety. Adults who used 5-MeO-DMT in a group setting with structured procedures | 2019 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 362 |
Citations in the library
Cites 5
- Construct Validity of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Meditating and Nonmeditating Samples Assessment February 29, 2008
- Mindfulness Interventions Annual Review of Psychology September 30, 2016
- Silent illumination: a study on Chan (Zen) meditation, anxiety, and musical performance quality Psychology of Music October 10, 2007
- Mind fulness and Music: A Promising Subject of an Unmapped Field International Journal of Behavioral Research & Psychology April 12, 2014
- Mechanisms of Mindfulness Training: Monitor and Acceptance Theory (MAT) Clinical Psychology Review November 5, 2016