Participating in Musical Events Leads to a Happier Life
Do you regularly attend concerts? Do you participate in dance classes? Do you sing in a group or choir? If you said “yes” to any of these, chances are you are more satisfied with your life. As if you needed another reason to want to audition for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. :-)
A new study from the journal Psychology of Music has people singing and dancing for joy! The study was written about in an article from Pacific Standard magazine and states that 1,000 Australians (with an average age of 56) who were interviewed by telephone in 2014 were asked to rate, on a 0–10 scale, “How satisfied are you with your life right now?” That general question was then broken down into seven specifics, such as how happy they were with their health, relationships, security, and achievements in life.
The participants were asked a series of yes or no questions to learn their habits and engagement with music. They were asked whether or not they composed music, attended concerts, sang, danced, listened to music, or played an instrument. The questioning was followed up by asking if participants normally engaged in music alone or with other people.
The study showed that “total wellbeing scores were significantly higher for people who reported that they danced or attended musical events.” Choral singers scored highest among all groups surveyed, ranking higher than nonsingers.