The influences of parents, teachers, peers and other factors on students' motivation in music

Abstract

This study examined influences of: parental support of music, previous musical experience, self-concept in music, teachers and peers, academic and social integration in music classes, and value of music on college nonmusic majors' intentions to continue music participation. An author-developed Choir Participation Survey was administered to 130 choir members at a large public university in the United States. The proposed path analytical model fitted data well and explained 42% ( p < .01) of variance in musical intentions. The analysis showed that students whose parents were involved in music and supportive of their children's musical participation developed better self-concepts in music, consequently felt more comfortable in choir academically and socially, valued music more, and as a result developed higher motivation to participate in various musical activities in the future. The strongest direct predictor of musical intentions was value of music (β = .65, p < .01).