ERIC Number: EJ846862
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0305-7356
EISSN: N/A
Silent Illumination: A Study on Chan (Zen) Meditation, Anxiety, and Musical Performance Quality
Lin, Peter; Chang, Joanne; Zemon, Vance; Midlarsky, Elizabeth
Psychology of Music, v36 n2 p139-155 2008
This study investigated the effects of Chan (Zen) meditation on musical performance anxiety and musical performance quality. Nineteen participants were recruited from music conservatories and randomly assigned to either an eight-week meditation group or a wait-list control group. After the intervention, all participants performed in a public concert. Outcome measures were performance anxiety and musical performance quality. Meditation practiced over a short term did not significantly improve musical performance quality. The control group demonstrated a significant decrease in performance quality with increases in performance anxiety. The meditation group demonstrated the opposite effect--a positive linear relation between performance quality and performance anxiety. This finding indicates that enhanced concentration and mindfulness (silent illumination), cultivated by Chan practice, might enable one to channel performance anxiety to improve musical performance. (Contains 2 figures and 3 tables.)
Descriptors: Control Groups, Context Effect, Metacognition, Music, Performance, Anxiety, Performance Based Assessment, Music Activities, Program Effectiveness, Relaxation Training
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A