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Osborne CBTforMPAinHSstudents 2005
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Impact
of a cognitive-behavioural treatment program
on music performance anxiety
in secondary school music students:
A pilot study
• ABSTRACT
This study assessed the effectiveness of a combined individual and group cognitive-
behavioural treatment (CBT) program to reduce music performance anxiety (MPA)
in adolescent musicians. Twenty-three adolescents with high MPA from a selective
high school were randomly assigned to either a seven-session intervention program
or a behaviour-exposure-only control group. The intervention consisted of
psychoeducation, goal setting, cognitive restructuring, relaxation training and
behavioural exposure in the form of two solo performances with audience.
Outcome measures included self-reports of MPA, trait and state anxiety, diagnostic
interview for social phobia, heart rate, frontalis EMG, and performance quality.
Significant improvements in self-reported MPA were observed at posttest for
adherent students only (i.e., students who were actively engaged in the program
and who adopted program techniques). Adherent students also had higher MPA at
commencement. Non-adherent and behaviour-exposure-only students both
showed reductions in MPA over the study period but not to the same degree as
adherent students. There appeared to be no effect of CBT on performance quality.
INTRODUCTION
Child and adolescent musicians suffer from music performance anxiety (MPA) that
is similar in quality and intensity to that experienced by adult musicians (Kenny &
Osborne, 2006; Osborne & Kenny, 2005, and in press; Osborne, Kenny, &
Holsomback, 2005; Ryan, 2005; Smith & Rickard, 2004). MPA has negative
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ROLE OF PARENTS
Parents of anxious youth are more likely to report pessimistic expectations regarding
their children’s social, academic and health related functioning (Cobham, Dadds, &
Spence, 1998; Kortlander, Kendall, & Panichelli-Mindel, 1997) and to selectively
focus on negative outcomes, and/or catastrophise future negative outcomes for their
children (Barrett, Rapee, Dadds, & Ryan, 1996; Chorpita & Barlow, 1998).
Children may internalise the negative response styles of their parents and adopt
pessimistic self-beliefs about their lack of resources to cope with anxiety-provoking
situations. Although it is unclear whether pessimistic parental expectancies precede
or accompany childhood anxiety (Eisen, Spasaro, Brien, Kearney, & Albano, 2004),
high parental anxiety is a risk factor for poorer treatment outcomes in anxious
children (Cobham et al., 1998; Dadds & Barrett, 1996).
Parental support and encouragement can have a profound influence on the
development of musical ability in their children (Howe & Davidson, 2003). Davidson,
Howe, Moore and Sloboda (1996) found that the most successful children had
parents who were highly involved in lessons and practice in the earliest stage of
learning. Further, successful music learners often had parents who were involved
with music themselves. Davidson et al. (1996) reasoned that this could be attributed
to parental beliefs about the level of talent in their children being a strong
determinant of their behaviour (Dweck, 1986). Alternatively, children whose parents
were involved in music may actually have more musical ability. Parents can both
facilitate musical development and impair their children’s ability to perform and
enjoy music by their imposition of high demands and low support for meeting those
demands (Kenny & Osborne, 2006).
AVAILABLE TREATMENTS
Various treatments have been investigated for reducing performance-impairing
MPA. Psychological treatments include behavioural, cognitive, cognitive-behavioural,
combined treatments, and other therapies (e.g. hypnotherapy, meditation). In a
systematic review of MPA treatments, Kenny (2005) concluded that although the
evidence for improvements in MPA following CBT is consistent and positive
compared to other approaches, MPA treatment research as a whole is compromised
by inconsistent methodologies, unclear definitions of MPA, and the use of
psychometrically weak and inappropriate outcome measures. All MPA treatment
studies to date have used adult or tertiary student musicians. Only Ely (1991)
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ADHERENCE
Treatment adherence or compliance (i.e., the extent to which the adolescent
complies with prescribed treatment) has a significant impact on therapeutic outcome
(Chu & Kendall, 2004; Shaw, 2001). This includes the adolescent’s willingness to
participate in therapy activities, to self-disclose, ask questions, and mentally engage
with the therapeutic material (e.g., Braswell, Kendall, Braith, Carey, & Vye, 1985).
Treatment adherence is influenced by the development of a therapeutic alliance
between therapist and client (Creed & Kendall, 2005; Kendall & Chu, 2000;
Shirk & Karver, 2003; Shirk & Saiz, 1992). Alliance building is essential for valid
assessment and effective therapy, given that children and adolescents rarely refer
themselves for treatment, often do not recognize or acknowledge the existence of
problems, and frequently are at odds with their parents about the goals of therapy
(DiGiuseppe, Linscott, & Jilton, 1996; Shirk & Saiz, 1992).
Previous research has shown that the more challenging performance context of
students with extensive music training in selective specialised schools may be a
contributing factor to significantly higher reports of MPA than students with less
musical training in non-selective schools (Osborne et al., 2005). It is plausible that
students in a selective school environment perform under conditions of high
expectations of excellence, thereby increasing the fear and likelihood of negative
evaluation of their performance, and any potential negative consequences that may
result (Osborne & Franklin, 2002). Currently there is no published empirical data
assessing cognitive-behavioural intervention for MPA within a school setting. The
aim of this study is to provide an indication of the feasibility and effectiveness of such
an intervention for secondary school music students, taking into account program
adherence and parental expectancies.
It was hypothesised that adolescent musicians who participated in a combined
individual/GCBT program (CBT) would obtain significant reductions in MPA
measured through self-report, physiological assessments of heart rate and frontalis
muscle tension, and behaviourally through enhanced performance quality of a piece
played to an audience. It was hypothesised that reductions in MPA would be greater
for the CBT group than the behaviour exposure (music performance) only group,
and that adherent students would achieve better outcomes from the intervention
than less adherent students. It was further hypothesised that parental expectancies of
students who achieved the most reduction in MPA scores would be more positive
than students who reported minimal change in anxiety scores as a result of the
intervention.
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METHOD
PARTICIPANTS
One hundred and eleven (111) students from Grades 7, 8, 9 and 11 were screened
for MPA at the Conservatorium High School, Sydney, Australia. Entrance is decided
by competitive auditions, providing a population of highly competent students.
Thirty-two students who scored within the top 25% of scores on the Music
Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents (MPAI-A) (Osborne & Kenny, 2005)
were invited to participate in the treatment study, of whom nine boys and 14 girls
chose to participate following parental consent. Their mean age was 13.87 years
(SD = 1.22 years). They played string (33%), piano (22%), wind (18.5%), brass
(18.5%), and percussion (7.4%) and had learned for a mean of 6.46 years
(SD = 2.71 years). Mean time spent practising per day was 1 hour 25 minutes
(SD = 36 minutes).
PROCEDURE
Ethical approval for the study was obtained from the Human Research Ethics
Committee of The University of Sydney. The study was introduced to students in
music class and information sheets and consent forms were distributed for delivery
to parents. Following screening and selection of eligible consenting students, half
were randomly allocated to the cognitive-behavioural intervention group (MPEP),
and half to the behaviour-exposure-only control group (BEO). The control group
was invited to participate in a MPEP intervention at the conclusion of the first
program.
Parents were invited to attend an information session outlining the program and
time commitments for after-school sessions and performances. The Parental
Expectations Scale (PES) (Eisen et al., 2004) was subsequently mailed out to parents
with a cover letter instructing parents to return in the reply paid envelope provided.
A preintervention assessment of all participating students was conducted. Upon
presentation for assessment, the students were interviewed using the Anxiety
Disorders Interview Schedule for DSM-IV (Child version, ADIS-IV:C) (Silverman
& Albano, 1996). Students completed the self-report State-Trait Anxiety Inventory
(STAI) trait anxiety subscale (Spielberger, 1983) in session and were assessed for their
baseline heart rate and frontalis muscle tension. Within a week of their preintervertion
assessment, students gave a solo unaccompanied performance in front of an audience
of parents and peers of a 2-3 minute piece of music that demonstrated their highest
level of musical proficiency. Their performance was audio recorded for later review
by professional musicians. Prior to the performance, students completed the STAI-
state anxiety subscale. Heart rate and frontalis muscle measurements commenced
five minutes before the performance, continued throughout the performance, and
finished five minutes after the performance ended. Assessments were conducted by
a Registered Psychologist (first author).
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Table 1
Music Performance Enhancement Program (MPEP)
The MPEP included the main components of CBT for child and adolescent
anxiety disorders. Sessions were scheduled weekly, apart from a free “practice week”
scheduled between the third and fourth sessions due to the unavailability of the
therapist, and the mid-semester break of two weeks, which took place between
sessions five and six. Group sessions of one hour duration were scheduled from 4-
5pm in a large classroom with the high school. Individual sessions of 45 minutes
duration were conducted in an office within the Conservatorium.
Within two weeks of program completion all students undertook a postintervention
assessment using the same methodology as the preintervention assessments. Students
played the same piece of music as their first performance. The procedural protocol
showing tests and times of assessment is presented in Table 2.
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Table 2
Assessments at each time period for experimental and control groups
MEASURES
Self-report measures
1) Demographics. Data collected included age, gender, principal instrument, length
of time studied, time practised each day, desire to be a professional musician,
importance of music in the family, pattern and frequency of performing.
2) Music Performance Anxiety Inventory - Adolescents (MPAI-A) (Osborne & Kenny,
2005) was designed for adolescent musicians aged 12-19 years to assess the somatic,
cognitive and behavioural components of MPA. Fifteen items measured the somatic
(e.g., “Before I perform, I get butterflies in my stomach”), cognitive (e.g., “I often
worry about my ability to perform”) and behavioural (e.g., “I would rather play on
my own than in front of other people”) characteristics of anxiety, which were
answered on a seven-point Likert scale ranging from “0-Not at all” to “6-All of the
time”. Descriptive statistics from a sample of 298 specialised music students used to
construct and validate the measure were: mean = 42.92; standard deviation = 19.44;
minimum = 0; maximum = 87. This measure has high internal consistency
(Cronbach’s alpha = .91). Construct validity was demonstrated by significant positive
relationships with self-reported social phobia, convergent validity by moderate to
strong positive correlation with an adult measure of MPA, and discriminant validity
by a weaker positive relationship with depression, and no relationship with
externalizing behaviour problems.
3) Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for DSM-IV: Child Interview Schedule
(ADIS-IV:C) (Silverman & Albano, 1996). The ADIS-IV:C is a semi-structured
interview schedule for the diagnosis of childhood and adolescent anxiety disorders
using DSM-IV criteria (APA, 1995). The following diagnoses were assessed:
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right side = 1.82 µV (1.39), left side = 2.04 µV (1.43) (Matheson, Toben, & de la
Cruz, 1988).
Behavioural measure
One musical phrase of approximately 20 seconds in length was sampled from each
performance for each student. Pre- and postintervention samples were randomised
within subjects and played to ten judges for evaluation of performance quality.
Judges had obtained at least a masters degree in music. Prior to presentation of
stimuli judges were asked to rate the performance samples for overall performance
quality by providing a rating of “1 — Better” or “2 — Worse”. Criteria-specific
evaluation was considered too complex for the purpose of this study. An additional
sample from one student was used as a practice example. Five student samples were
repeated as a measure of intra-rater reliability.
performance using 1 kHz pure tone and pink noise played on a Sony CDP-921 CD
player through a BOSE Lifestyle Powered Speaker System (left speaker only) at one
meter from each instrument’s sound source. Sound levels were measured using a
Rion NL-06 integrating sound level meter. The recorded pink noise for each
recording was used to equalise the peak levels of each sample to ensure that the
relative sound pressure level for each performance was the same. The files were then
edited in Digital Performer (Version 4.12, Mac OSX) and final samples saved to CD.
Performance evaluations were conducted in an acoustically treated room. Judges
1, 2 and 3 were seated in front of two DynAudio BM15 speakers in a two metre
equilateral (60 degree angle) listening triangle. This provided an optimal listening
position. Judges 4 to 10 listened to the samples in a quiet environment via circum-
aural closed-back stereo monitoring headphones (Sennheiser HD 650). This enabled
the study to be conducted in the first author’s office. Samples were played on CD
from a Sony CDP-921 CD player with a constant output level for all judges.
DESIGN
The study employed a 2 × 2 mixed design with a between subjects (intervention
versus control group) comparison and a within subjects Time 1 (preintervention)
versus Time 2 (postintervention) comparison. Behavioural exposure was used both
as an intervention and outcome measure in order to have a direct method of
comparing the two groups.
RESULTS
Between group comparisons were undertaken using intention to treat analyses. The
difference between the MPAI-A at pre- and postintervention was calculated. The
difference score for one participant who had an outlying value of – 55 points was
recoded to – 40 points to be 2.1 standard deviations from the mean. This placed the
value closer to the remainder of the data to avoid undue influence on mean values.
Parametric tests (independent t-tests) were used for comparisons for measures that
were normally distributed. Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used for
measures that violated normality. Scatterplots and Pearson’s correlation coefficient
were used to examine relationships between continuous variables.
DEMOGRAPHICS
Participants were aged between 12 and 16 years of age (M = 13.87, SD = 1.22).
There were 14 students in the MPEP group and nine in the BEO group. Unequal
group numbers were due to student withdrawal after commencement of the
program. The baseline characteristics of each group shown in Table 3 indicate that
the two groups were comparable. The difference in total number of other diagnoses
reported (Dysthymia, Generalised Anxiety Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder and
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Table 3
Baseline characteristics by group
SELF-REPORT MEASURES
Table 4 shows the outcome measures for the two groups. The MPEP group scored
lower at postintervention than the BEO group for MPA and performance fear as
indicated by larger negative mean differences, however the confidence intervals were
wide. There was no difference in MPAI-A scores between the MPEP and BEO
groups, F (1,21) = 0.69, p = .42. Similarly there was no difference in STAI-State
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Table 4
Mean values, standard deviations and tests of significance for self-report measures
Correlations between total PES score for mothers and fathers with MPAI-A
difference scores were not significant: mothers, r = – .01, p = .88; fathers, r = .37,
p = .21.
Students in both the MPEP and BEO groups met various ADIS-IV:C diagnostic
criteria. Equal numbers of students in each group met ADIS-IV:C criteria for Social
Phobia (performance subtype; generalised), Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder,
Dysthymia and Major Depressive Disorder. These diagnoses did not change from
pre- to posttest for either group.
The number of students who met criteria for Social Phobia (SocP) (generalised
including music performance) and Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) pre- and
postintervention by group is presented in Figure 1. The most significant changes
between pre- and postintervention were for SocP (generalised including music
performance) and GAD diagnoses. The numbers with GAD decreased by 50% for
both MPEP and BEO groups. Diagnoses of SocP decreased by 84% for the MPEP
group, and 50% for the BEO group. No valid comparison could be made with BEO
because there were only two students pretest with a diagnosis of SocP.
Figure 2 shows the pre- to postintervention reduction in performance avoidance
ratings for the MPEP and BEO groups. This difference was significantly greater for
the MPEP group than the BEO group, Fisher’s Exact Test = .04.
Participant adherence
A total adherence variable was calculated using a combination of therapist judgment
and objective measures. The therapist coded the students as 0 or 1 for adherence
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Figure 1.
ADIS-IV:C diagnostic changes in SocP (generalised including music performance) and GAD pre-
and postintervention in the MPEP and BEO groups.
Figure 2.
Pre- and postintervention ADIS-IV:C performance avoidance ratings for MPEP and BEO groups.
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based on his subjective rating of their motivation and degree to which they
demonstrated integration and implementation of new learning from their treatment
sessions. Objective measures of adherence included the number of sessions attended
and homework tasks completed. If all criteria were achieved, the student was coded
as adherent. If one or more criteria were not met, the student was coded as non-
adherent.
(i) MPAI-A and STAI
Students in the adherent group reported significantly higher preintervention MPA
than the non-adherent and BEO groups, t (20) = 2.6, p = .02. There was a significant
group x time interaction favouring the MPEP group F (2,20) = 11.52, p = .000.
Figure 3 shows the differences in MPAI-A by adherent, non-adherent and BEO
groups. Adherent students reported (non-significantly) higher STAI trait anxiety:
Adherent mean = 46.8 (12.8); non-adherent mean = 41.5 (14.8) (p = .52). There was
also a greater (non-significant) decrease in STAI state anxiety for the adherent group
[mean = – 5.6 (5.0)] than the non-adherent group [mean = – 3.1 (10.1), p = .60].
Figure 3.
Pre- and postintervention MPAI-A scores by group.
including music performance) diagnoses and 33% reduction for GAD (Figure 4).
There was a greater (non-significant) decrease in ADIS-IV:C performance fear
ratings for the adherent group (M = – 3.7, SD = 2.9) than the non-adherent group
(M = – 2.6, SD = 1.9; p = .44).
Figure 4.
Number of participants showing diagnostic changes for SocP (generalised including music
performance) and GAD pre- and postintervention in the adherent and non-adherent groups.
PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASURES
Descriptive statistics and Kruskal-Wallis tests of significance for heart rate (BPM)
and frontalis EMG measurements (µV) by adherence are given in Table 5. There
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Figure 5.
Pre- and postintervention ADIS-IV:C performance avoidance ratings for MPEP adherent and
non-adherent groups.
were no significant differences between the three groups on any of the physiological
measures. Students’ resting heart rates for all three groups were between 10 and 13.8
BPM higher than norms for their age.
Figure 6 shows the heart rate data. Heart rate five minutes before and five
minutes after the performance was, on average, between 14 and 25 BPM greater
than the normative heart rate for the age group. This difference increased to between
92 and 111 BPM immediately before and after the performance which was an
increase of between 27 and 46 BPM. All three groups showed the same heart rate
pattern — a higher than baseline heart rate five minutes before the performance, a
further increase at the start and end of the performance, and a reduction heart rate
five minutes after the performance that remained higher than baseline heart rate.
Such a pattern was not evident in frontalis EMG, which retained a flat line across
the performance measurements.
BEHAVIOURAL MEASURE
The percentage of correct identifications of pre- and postintervention samples for
each judge is given in Table 6. The number and percentage of correct judgements of
randomised repeats from five students is also presented. For percent correctly
identified, the overall percent in agreement was 62.1%. For repeat percent agreement
with original rating, the overall percent in agreement for all raters was 53.1% and
kappa was 0.06.
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Table 5
Mean values, standard deviations and tests of significance for physiological measures
DISCUSSION
Figure 6.
Pre- and postintervention heart rate for adherent, non-adherent and BEO groups.
significant differences that may have been detectable with a larger sample, there was
a greater reduction in performance fear ratings for the adherent MPEP group but not
for the non-adherent MPEP or BEO groups. The MPEP group achieved a greater
reduction in SocP (generalised including music performance) than the BEO group.
There was little difference in diagnoses at posttest between the adherent and non-
adherent groups. Both the MPEP group and adherent sub-group reported a greater
reduction in heart rate at the start and end of their performances than BEO and non-
adherent groups, but these reductions were not significant. There was also no
discernible improvement in overall performance quality as a result of participation
in MPEP as indicated by the inability of the judges to correctly identify
postintervention performances.
The significant reduction in self-reported MPA for the adherent group is
consistent with previous research demonstrating reductions in self-reported state
anxiety following cognitive-behavioural intervention for MPA in tertiary students
(Harris, 1987; Roland, 1994) although Roland (1994) also reported moderate to
strong effect sizes for improvement in performance quality. Similar disjunctions
between self-report anxiety, heart rate and performance quality have been
demonstrated in previous studies following behavioural treatments for MPA with
tertiary music students. For example, pre- to posttreatment improvements have been
found for self-report measures of performance anxiety (Deen, 2000; Grishman,
1989; Mansberger, 1988) and heart rate (Grishman, 1989; Wardle, 1975), but not
performance quality (Deen, 2000; Mansberger, 1988; Wardle, 1975).
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Table 6
Percentage of samples correctly identified and repeat sample percent agreement
ADHERENCE
As hypothesised, there were significant differences between adherent and non-
adherent students in the MPEP, a finding consistent with previous research (Hudson,
2005; Ollendick & Schroeder, 2003; Pulliam, Gatchel, & Robinson, 2003). The
significantly higher levels of preprogram MPA in the adherent students may have
motivated adherence (McPherson & McCormick, 2006) and/or created higher
treatment expectancies (i.e., perceptions of treatment credibility and expectations for
improvement) (Chambless, Tran & Glass, 1997). Motivational processes can influence
a child’s acquisition, transfer, and use of knowledge and skills (Dweck, 1986).
Motivation has been found to mediate the effectiveness of a brief CBT intervention
for test anxiety in secondary school students, with more motivated students
achieving higher scores in end of school exams than less motivated students (Keogh,
Bond, & Flaxman, 2006).
PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY
There are inherent problems in inferring psychological processes from psycho-
physiological measures (Cacioppo, Tassinary, & Berntson, 2000). Heart rate was a
more reliable measure than frontalis EMG. Heart rate has been used as an outcome
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PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
The perceptual study indicated that there did not appear to be any benefits on
performance quality for MPEP participants as assessed by the judges. Indeed, the
judges were more accurate in correctly identifying post-program performances for
the BEO group than for either the adherent or non-adherent treatment groups. The
perceptual assessment format assumed that students would play better at their
second performance. This may not have been the case for some students. If students
in the treatment group did play worse in their second performance, the conclusion
that the MPEP program did not have a positive impact on their performance quality
would still be valid.
PARENTAL EXPECTANCIES
Parental expectancies have predicted barriers to treatment participation, treatment
attendance, and premature termination from therapy in previous studies
(Nock & Kazdin, 2001). There was no relationship between expectancies of mothers
or fathers as measured by the PES and reduction in MPA after the intervention.
Further analyses did not show any significant differences between the adherent and
non-adherent groups, although adherent group means were lower than the non-
adherent group for both mothers and fathers. This finding is consistent with the
adherent group reporting more preprogram MPA, given that parental expectancies
have been reported to be more negative among parents of children with anxiety
disorders and higher for parents of children without anxiety disorders (Cobham et
al., 1998; Eisen et al., 2004; Kortlander et al., 1997). However, the adherent group
did have a better treatment outcome than the non-adherent group, which suggests
that for these students, high MPA may have been a more dominant motivating factor
than parental expectancy.
FEASIBILITY
There are many challenges to providing treatment in schools (Masia-Warner et al.,
2005). It was not possible to conduct the study at other school sites because all of
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the technical equipment needed for the study was located in the research laboratory
on site, and the need to conduct performances in the same venue. There are logistical
difficulties in conducting a relatively intensive intervention with students whose days
are already heavily committed to a range of other activities. The therapeutic
relationship is often nominated as the most important factor in decisions to
prematurely end treatment, followed closely by logistical difficulties such as family
problems (e.g., sick family member, transportation problems), appointment
problems, time and effort concerns (too much travel time involved, competing
demands with other academic subjects and sports), and perception that treatment is
not needed or not helpful (Garcia & Weisz, 2002; Kazdin, Holland, & Crowley,
1997; Morris & Thomas, 1995). All of these difficulties were encountered in this
study, and were given as reasons for not wanting to participate in the program,
attend sessions or complete homework tasks. Time and cost of implementing
psychotherapeutic interventions in schools is considerable (Kratochwill & Van
Someren, 1995) and programs such as MPEP are labour intensive, requiring much
effort to gain support from teaching staff, student administration, parents, and
prospective participants.
LIMITATIONS
First, the most obvious limitation of this study is the small number of participants.
This was due to the small population of students at the performance high school
from which we recruited participants. Second, this study investigated postintervention
outcomes without long term follow-up. Stronger effects have sometimes been found
following CBT intervention at long term follow-up than immediately postintervention.
For example, some music students following CBT intervention showed greater
reductions in heart rate at one year follow-up than at posttest (Roland, 1994).
Children who qualify for an anxiety diagnosis show a greater reduction in diagnoses
at 24 months follow-up than post intervention (Dadds et al., 1999) as well as lower
self-report anxiety at 6- and 12-months follow-up (Cobham et al., 1998). Third,
assessments were conducted by a psychologist who knew which group the students
were in, opening up the possibility of experimenter bias. Standardised measures were
used to counteract such bias (McBurney, 1994). Fourth, although holistic marking
is viewed as an ecologically valid measure of performance quality (Thompson
& Williamon, 2003), some judges found it difficult to provide an overall rating of
performance quality as they did not know which criteria should take precedence in
a particular piece (e.g., technique, rhythmic accuracy, intonation etc.).
IMPLICATIONS
Participation in a CBT program may reduce the subjective experience of MPA in
secondary school students who are adherent to the program requirements. The most
anxious students were more adherent to the cognitive-behavioural intervention and
achieved greater reductions in self-reported anxiety postintervention. Given that this
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FUTURE DIRECTIONS
This intervention study raises many interesting questions and replication is
necessary. Students did not enjoy the performance component of the program but
recognised its value in performance anxiety management. As performing is an
essential component of music education (Bergee, 2003) a future study that examines
a more frequent program of behavioural exposure with larger numbers of students
would be advantageous. Although this study provides qualified support for
psychological intervention in reducing high MPA in adolescent music students,
careful selection of students is necessary to achieve cost-effective outcomes.
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mostrato riduzioni dello MPA durante il periodo di studio, ma non nello stesso
grado degli studenti aderenti. Non è apparso alcun effetto del CBT sulla qualità
esecutiva.
Dans cette étude, nous évaluons l’efficacité d’un programme de traitement cognitif
et comportemental (CBT : cognitive-behavioural treatment) qui combine un travail
individuel et en groupe pour réduire l’angoisse devant l’interprétation musicale
(MPA : musical performance anxiety) chez les jeunes. Vingt-trois adolescents d’une
école secondaire sélective, ayant une MPA forte, ont été assignés de manière
aléatoire à un programme d’intervention de sept sessions ou à un groupe témoin
uniquement soumis à une observation du comportement. L’intervention a consisté
en psychoéducation, définition d’objectifs, restructuration cognitive, travail de
détente et étude du comportement lors de deux performances solistes devant un
public. Après ce travail, nous avons étudié l’autoévaluation de MPA, les caractéris-
tiques et le niveau d’angoisse, des interviews pour diagnostiquer d’éventuelles
phobies sociales, le rythme cardiaque, l’EMG du muscle frontal et la qualité de
l’interprétation. On a trouvé d’importantes améliorations dans l’autoévaluation de
la MPA au cours d’un test ultérieur mais ceci uniquement chez les étudiants ayant
participé activement au programme et qui en avaient utilisé les techniques. Leur
MPA était aussi plus élevée au début. Les autres étudiants ont montré des
réductions de MPA pendant la période de l’étude, mais inférieures à celle des
participants actifs. Il a semblé que le CBT n’avait pas d’effet sur la qualité de
l’interprétation.
84