Self beliefs and program participation: How does the musical self-concept develop? Research on the program “An Instrument for every child”

Abstract

The musical self-concept has recently been discussed in a number of studies. Most of these studies follow a differential design, aiming at the investigation of the structural dimension of the self-concept (Hellmich & Günther, 2011, S. 25). Yet, a completely different quest is to investigate the development of the musical self-concept during primary school. Does it show a slight decline – a transformation described by Helmke (1998, S. 115ff.) as a development from being an “optimist†to becoming a “realist� 

The present article presents research from within the program “An Instrument for Every Child†in two federal states of Germany, Northrhine-Westphalia and Hamburg, and inquires the development of the musical self-concept under these specific circumstances. It is based on the longitudinal sample of the Bielefeld Study on Instrumental Learning in Groups (BEGIn, 2008 – 2013), comprised of around 1500 students and their parents.

Results from this study show, that the musical self-concept in “Making Music†displays a slightly negative development over the course of the primary school years. This compares to Helmkes description of becoming a “realistâ€. The strongest decline is observed during grade 2 of primary school. However, individual developments dominate. Children, who drop out of the program „An Instrument for Every Child“ during primary school, experience the biggest decreases in the self-concept in “Making Musicâ€, compared to children who continue with it until the end or did not even start with it in grade 2. The study indicates, that musical self-concept might be a predictor of drop-out from the program on the one hand side. However, a drop-out from the program also seems to have significant effects on further development of the musical self-concept. At the same time, no significant effects have to be reported on the group level.

Finally, the contribution discusses, whether teachers should rather follow theories of “self-enhancement†(Calsyn & Kenny, 1977) to keep musical self-concepts as high as possible over the course of the primary school years, or whether a development towards more “realism†should be supported through following a “skill-development model†(ibid.).

 

Keywords: development, musical self-concept, Skill development, An Instrument for Every Child