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The Role Of Teachers In Addressing Anxiety In Adolescent Students And Beyond
Although most music teachers have personal experience with performance anxiety, few have a clear picture of how to guide students to end the cycle of anxiety. Studies show it is of utmost importance that this lack of knowledge is rectified and performance anxiety is not overlooked. This point is supported by a research study conducted by Lydia Fehm and Katia Schmidt, where 86 percent of the adolescent musicians surveyed called for more assistance in managing performance anxiety.1 The following analysis of available research will provide teachers with the necessary tools to begin addressing performance anxiety in their studios and to better equip students for successful performance experiences.
PART ONE: SYMPTOMS AND CAUSES Music Performance Anxiety (MPA) Definition
Before addressing available treatments and teaching strategies to combat performance anxiety, it is important to have a clear understanding of the symptoms, causes and contributors of performance anxiety.
Paul G. Salmon provided what has become one of the most commonly used definitions of performance anxiety: "Music performance anxiety is the experience of persisting, distressful apprehension about and/or actual impairment of performance skills in a public context, to a degree unwarranted given the individual's musical aptitude, training and level of preparation."2 Another recognized definition is provided by Dianna T Kenny: "[Music performance anxiety is] the experience of marked and persistent anxious apprehension related to musical performance that has arisen through specific anxiety conditioning experiences, and which is manifested through combinations of affective, cognitive, somatic and behavioral symptoms."3 Both researchers focus on the apprehension that accompanies music performance anxiety and the resulting symptoms and performance impairment.
Anxiety is the body's natural response to perceived threats, whether real or imagined, and triggers the innate "fight-flight-or-freeze" mechanism controlled by the autonomic nervous system. While in this heightened state of arousal, the body experiences physiological symptoms that can interfere with performance, behavior is often modified, and the mind is more susceptible to negative cognitive processes and self-doubt. These three categories of symptoms - physiological, behavioral and cognitive - all contribute in varying degrees to the negative effects of performance anxiety. It is important to remember that these symptoms are the result of anxiety, rather than the underlying cause.4
Symptoms
Because...