Are there gender differences in instrumental music practice?

Abstract

This research aimed to consider whether there were gender differences in the amount of practice undertaken by boys and girls, the practice strategies adopted and motivation to practise. A sample of 2027 girls and 1225 boys aged 6-19 years, ranging in level of expertise from beginner through to conservatory entrance level, playing instruments representative of the classical and popular instruments played in the UK completed a self-report Likert scale questionnaire. There were no statistically significant gender differences in weekly practice time or motivation to practise. Factor analysis of statements relating to practice revealed seven factors. There were statistically significant gender differences in relation to the adoption of systematic practice strategies (girls were more systematic), concentration (boys perceived they had higher levels of concentration) and immediate correction of errors (girls reported more immediate correction). There were no statistically significant gender differences in relation to the organisation of practice, the use of recordings and a metronome, the use of analytic strategies, and the adoption of ineffective practice strategies although for this factor there was a statistically significant interaction between gender and level of expertise.

Existem diferenças na prática e na motivação entre alunos iniciantes tocando diferentes instrumentos musicais?

“…Interestingly, the instruments played by the participants reflected the gender preferences well established in other research (e.g. ABELES, 2009;ROGERS;CREECH, 2008;KILLIAN;SATROM, 2011;SHELDON;PRICE, 2005;WYCH, 2012;HALLAM et al, 2017) The least gendered instruments were piano and keyboard. The girls predominantly played woodwind and stringed instruments and were singers.…”

Gender-differences in conservatoire music practice maladjustment. Can contextual professional goals and context-derived psychological needs satisfaction account for amotivation variations?

“…Men musicians tend to attribute higher importance to drive for musical excellence, to use more critical thinking strategies while evaluating their performance [52], and to consider analytical musical skills more representative of musical expertise than women [53]. They also do warm-up exercises more often and keep concentration more frequently, without stopping to correct mistakes immediately [54]. Lastly, when they prepare for performance, their practice is less structured and more pragmatic [55].…”

“…They, autonomously take more structured, rigorous, strict or self-demanding pathways in music practice and are more concerned with coping skills, however, scoring lower on these than men [53]. Women musicians conform more to teachers' standards and norms [45] and use systematic practice strategies more often, such as repeatedly playing passages slowly, setting targets, making practice lists, starting their practice with scales, marking difficult passages on the parts, and stopping to correct mistakes immediately [54]. However, sometimes they may feel less efficacious overall [44] and it has been suggested that they may experience a larger gap between their ideal and self-perceived skill levels, thus, having less positive attitudes towards their own skills [55].…”

Peer Learning in Instrumental Practicing

“…In higher music education (HME), research has paid little attention to gender differences with regard to instrumental practicing, with some exceptions (Nielsen, 2004 ; Hallam et al, 2017 ). Hallam et al ( 2017 ) found gender differences in use of practice strategies, concentration, and correction of errors during practice among pre-conservatoire students. On the other hand, Nielsen ( 2004 ) found no significant gender differences in first-year conservatoire students with regard to the use of learning strategies in individual practice sessions.…”