The Power of Music : An Exploration of the Evidence

Building on her earlier work, The Power of Music: A Research Synthesis of the Impact of Actively Making Music on the Intellectual, Social and Personal Development of Children and Young People , this volume by Susan Hallam and Evangelos Himonides is an important new resource in the field of music education, practice, and psychology. A well signposted text with helpful subheadings, The Power of Music: An Exploration of the Evidence gathers and synthesises research in neuroscience, psychology, and education to develop our understanding of the effects of listening to and actively making music. Its chapters address music's relationship with literacy and numeracy, transferable skills, its impact on social cohesion and personal wellbeing, as well as the roles that music plays in our everyday lives. Considering evidence from large population samples to individual case studies and across age groups, the authors also pose important methodological questions to the research community. The Power of Music defends qualitative research against a requirement for randomised control trials that can obscure the diverse and often fraught contexts in which people of all ages and backgrounds are exposed to, and engage with, music. This magnificent and comprehensive volume allows the evidence about the power of music to speak for itself, thus providing an essential directory for those researching music education and its social, personal, and cognitive impact across human ages and experiences. Author Biographies Susan Hallam Evangelos Himonides Preface 1. Introduction Music, Its Functions and Origins Transfer of Learning Methodological Issues Ways of Engaging with Music and Varying Levels of Commitment Music Therapy Interpreting the Research Findings 2. Music and Neuroscience Neuroscientific Methods Changes in the Brain following Musical Activity Comparisons between Musicians’ and Non-Musicians’ Expertise The Automation of Skills as Expertise Increases Bimanual Motor Coordination Multisensory Learning Neurological Differences Relating to Genre and the Instrument Played Studies with Child Musicians and Non-Musicians Genetic and Maturational€Effects versus Training€Effects Intervention Studies Overview 3. Aural€Perception and Language€Skills Explanations of the Relationships between Music and€Language Comparisons between Musicians and Non-Musicians Research with Children Research with those with Auditory or Language€Impairments Overview 4. Literacy and Related Language€Skills Correlation Studies and Comparisons between Musicians and Non-Musicians Intervention Studies Children Facing Challenges with Literacy Skills Are Pitch or Rhythm€Programmes More Effective in Enhancing€Literacy? Reviews, Meta-Analyses and Conclusions Spelling Writing Overview 5. Music, Spatial Reasoning and Mathematical€Performance Comparisons between Musicians and Non-Musicians, and Correlation€Studies Musical Interventions and Spatial-Temporal Reasoning The Relationships between Spatial€Skills and€Mathematics The Relationships between Music, Spatial Skills and€Mathematics Musical Engagement and Mathematical Performance Overview 6. The Impact of Musical Engagement on Memory Visual Memory Research with Children Verbal Memory Research with Children Working Memory Research with Adults Research with Children and Young People Older Adults Reviews and Meta-Analyses Overview 7. Executive Functioning and€Self-Regulation Research with Adults Research with Children Research with Older People Reviews of the Literature Overview 8. Intellectual Development Nature or Nurture Correlational and Comparative Research with Adults Correlation and Comparative Research with Children Intervention Studies Music and Emotional Intelligence Studies with Older Adults Reviews and Meta-Analyses Overview 9. Musicians and Creativity Neurological Studies of Creativity Correlational and Comparative Research on Musicians The Personality of Musicians and Creativity Intervention Studies Creativity in Later Life Reviews and Meta-Analyses Overview 10. General Attainment Correlation and Comparative Studies Large-Scale Research Research with Disadvantaged Populations Intervention Research Reviews and Meta-Analyses Explanations for the Research Findings Neurological Studies Length of Engagement with Music Type, Nature and Quality of Musical Training The Role of Executive Functions in Attainment Personality Factors Motivation Overview 11. Music and Studying Listening to Music prior to Completing a Task Background Music The Nature of the Music Preferred Music, Familiarity and Liking Preference for Music of One’s Own Culture The Nature of the Task To Be Completed Background Music and Memory Background Music and Attention Reading Comprehension Second-Language Learning Background Music and English as a Second Language Individual Differences Musical Expertise Gender Personality Background Music and Metacognition The Impact of Background Music on Children’s Behaviour and Task Performance Background Music and Primary-School Children Background Music and Older Students Research with Children with Emotional and Behavioural€Difficulties, ADHD and Developmental€Difficulties Children with Attention€Deficit€Hyperactivity€Disorder and Attention€Deficit€Disorder Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties Older Adults and those with Cognitive Impairment Reviews and Meta-Analyses Explaining the Impact of Background Music on Cognitive Performance An Explanatory Framework Overview 12. Re-Engagement and€Motivation Motivation Motivation Developed through Engagement€with€Music Children and Young People Facing Challenging Life Circumstances El Sistema and Sistema-inspired Programmes Raised Aspirations and Motivation for Learning Self-Beliefs School Attendance and Positive€Attitudes towards€School Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties Transferable Skills Music Interventions Unrelated to El Sistema School Attendance and Attitudes towards School The Integration of Young People with Special Educational Needs into Mainstream Education School-Based Music Therapy Interventions for Children with Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties The Role of Rap and Hip€Hop in Therapy in€School€Contexts Music Programmes for Young Offenders Music Programmes for Adult Offenders Choirs Projects Using Gamelan Assorted Music Therapies Overview 13. Personal, Social and Physical€Development Personal Development Music and Identity Music and Personality Self-Beliefs Self-Beliefs, Deprivation and Disaffection Children with Special Educational€Needs and€Disabilities Ensemble Participation Musical Preferences and Self-Esteem Social Development Musical Ensembles and Teamwork School Climate Sistema Programmes Prosocial Skills and Empathy Interventions for Children with Special Educational€Needs and€Disabilities Physical Development Music, Locomotor Performance and Coordinated€Motor€Skills Overview 14. Psychological Wellbeing The Use of Music to Support Emotional Stability and Manage€Moods Singing Wellbeing in Young Children Music and Wellbeing in School-Aged Participants Music and Wellbeing in Adolescents and Young People Actively Making Music Music and Wellbeing in Adults Participation in Musical Activities Attendance at Music Festivals Music and Wellbeing in the Older Generation Music, Wellbeing and the COVID-19 Pandemic The Impact of the Pandemic on Music Professionals Overview 15. Music and Physical and Mental€Health The Role of Music in Psychological and Physical Health Music, Stress and the Immune System Active Music-Making and the Promotion of General Good Health Music, Health and the Older Generation Music, Dementia and Care in the Home Reviews of the Relationship between Music Therapy and Dementia Music, Public Health and Music on Prescription The Role of Community Music and Creative€Workshops Music, Brain Plasticity and Movement Breathing Speech Impairment Music in Hospital Settings Music and Mental Health: Stress, Anxiety and€Depression Mental Health Care in Children, Adolescents and Young€People Insomnia Music, Trauma and Abuse Severe Mental Ill-Health Overview 16. Music, Inclusion and Social€Cohesion Music and Conflict Music and Refugees Social Inclusion Overview 17. Music in Everyday Life Music and Leisure Listening to Music Attending Live Musical Events Actively Making Music Socioeconomic Status Music in the Arts Listening to Support Everyday Activities Music and Driving Music at Work and to Accompany Mental Activity Music and Exercise Music, Commerce and Consumption The Economics of Music Music and Non-Human Species Overview Reflections on an Exploration of the Evidence for the Power€of€Music Bibliography Index "Building on her earlier work, 'The Power of Music: A Research Synthesis of the Impact of Actively Making Music on the Intellectual, Social and Personal Development of Children and Young People', this volume by Susan Hallam and Evangelos Himonides is an important new resource in the field of music education, practice, and psychology. A well-signposted text with helpful subheadings, 'The Power of Music: An Exploration of the Evidence' gathers and synthesises research in neuroscience, psychology, and education to develop our understanding of the effects of listening to and actively making music. Its chapters address music's relationship with literacy and numeracy, transferable skills, its impact on social cohesion and personal wellbeing, as well as the roles that music plays in our everyday lives. Considering evidence from large population samples to individual case studies and across age groups, the authors also pose important methodological questions to the research community. 'The Power of Music' defends qualitative research against a requirement for randomised control trials that can obscure the diverse and often fraught contexts in which people of all ages and backgrounds are exposed to, and engage with, music. This magnificent and comprehensive volume allows the evidence about the power of music to speak for itself, thus providing an essential directory for those researching music education and its social, personal, and cognitive impact across human ages and experiences."--Publisher's website.