Does practice make perfect?

Curuent theory and researeh on instrumental music practice

Edited by Harald Jorgensen and Andreas C. Lehmann

Norges musikkhogskole NMH-publikasjoner 1997:1

The effects of individual differences in motivation, volition, and maturational processes on practice behavior of young

instrumentalists
Christian Harnischmacher UniversitY of Cologne' Cologne

Introduction
practicing is a fundamental activity of musicians. It is known that this activity has to be is supposed to start at an early age ifa careerofprofessionalinstrumentalists based only Increase of quality of instrumental playing is not ,riti*ut"ty "o.."".f.ri Experts generally agre-ethat on an early start, but also on the quality of practice. supervision' and metaknowledge of motivation, starting age, prior "*p"ti"t'", (e.g',Lehmann, in press,for p"u"tl"" influenceth" qirrtiiy of practice,ofsub-experts will show to what extent an overview; Harnischma.hlr, 1993).The present study have on the practicing of the influence of variables related to motivation and volition sub-ex per ts,i n clu di n gch i ld re na ndadol escents' Tomyknowl edge' thereareno students during childhood studies on volitional influences on the practicing of music It will also be investigated if the explanation of individual and adolescence. through motivation and differencesin practice behavior is more accurately predicted I will discuss volition or influences of maturational changes. Therefore, processes,motivation' and instrumental practice and its relation to maturational of a previous study volition. The present study continues the dxplorative approach (Harnischmacher on instrumental practi.irrg b"ha.'ior of chilJren and adolescents of 100 German lggb). This study analyzeJ written essayson the topic "My fractice" students from private music studios' practice as an similarly, the present study attempts to describe instrumental 1993). From a theoretical everyday action t".g. Hulu*, iggs, H-arnischmacher, of human behavior (e.g.' perspective,the category of action describesonly one aspect do not only use a single Ribke, 1985).under normal circumstances,instrumentalists methods' The structure p"u*i." method, but a whole complexrepertoire of practice of individual methods' of the practice methods can be describedin larger interplay the first phase corresponds Expe*s distinguish different phasesof practice, of which (warm-up, scales, technical exercises, to the maintenance of performance level 7L

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etudes, repetition of repertoire pieces), while the second phase is focused on skillbuilding and the acquisition of concert repertoire (acquiring new literature, new interpretation of learned repertoire pieces; see Harnischmacher, 1993). The present study tries to explain the use of corresponding methods, and it investigates more complex connections among those different aspects of children's and adolescents' practice. One important explanation for differences in the practice behavior relies on maturational processes (Manturzeweska, 1990). Musicians tend to develop useful practice strategies relatively late, and the length of practice time varies at different stages of life (Harnischmacher, 1993; Sloboda, Davidson, Howe, & Moore, 1996). Harnischmacher (1994a, 1995) found. four developmental stages in the practice of children and adolescents. During the first stage, the "Activity Phase" , when students are approximately 8 to 10 years old, practice is characterized by the playful component as a self-generated form of action. In the stage of "Adoption" (age 11 to 12 years), the child adopts an externally imposed work ethic. Also, it starts to think about the causality and goal-orientation of practice. During the stage of "Assimilation" (age 13 to 14 years) practice becomes a chore that is integrated into the daily schedule. Here, the playful component of practice serves as relaxation. In the stage of "Identification" (age 15 to 18 years), the student reflects on the selforientation of practice, and the increased quality and economy of practice plays a more important role. In the coulse of the stages, the initial and only playful component vanishes, yet it remains in the "social game" of playing with others. It remains open to rvhat extent these stages describe a qualitative characteristic of the development of practice specifically, or rather if these changes are the result of more general maturational processes.Therefore, the present study investigates the possible contribution of age and starting age (age at which instrumental training began) on instrumental playing (e.g., Ericsson et al. 1993, Sloboda et a1., 1996, Lehmann, in press). Only those practice procedures will be considered that were previously found to be relevant for the practice behavior of children and adolescents (Harnischmacher 1994a, 1995). Motivational and volitional processes are likely to predict and explain practice behavior to some degree. Motivation in a narrow sense describes the reflection on and choice of a goal for action based on an "expectancy-value" model (e.g., Heckhausen, 1939). Different motivational settings will be described below in the context of practice, distinguishing a real situation (performance preparation), a perceived situation (goal orientation, external action distraction), and a disposition (self-concept abilities of instrumental playing). Finally, I will outline dispositional aspects of volition pertaining to instrumental music practice. Motivation depends primarily on the concrete situation (e.g., Kuhl & Beckmann, 1994). The distinction between practicing as performance preparation as opposed to practicing without performance preparation is a good predictor of practice times. Music students increase their practice times when practicing for an upcoming performance (Harnischmacher, 1993, p. 168). Thus, an upcoming performance seems to have an extrinsically motivating effect. In addition to objective characteristics of the situation, subjective perception of situational aspects play an important role (Eckes, 1990; Forgas, 1983). This was investigated in the previous study (I{arnischmacher, 1995). The cross-sectional analysis of 100 student essays showed affective-evaluative aspects and particularly

Effects of individual differences

T3

action promoting or action inhibiting aspects of practice, which is consistent with the general claims by King and Sorrentino (1983) for goal-oriented situations. In the action promoting category of goal orientation, students listed their short- and. longterm goals of practice. In order of frequency of occurrence, practice is mainly oriented towards ensemble playing (60%), followed by the musical pieces (26%), t]ne instrumental teacher (10%) and rarely directed toward the instrum.ent (4%). The category of external action distraction captures negative influences on practice which are attributed to certain environmental conditions. The students did not see themselves as being responsible, but rather as falling "victim" to external influences. In this category of external action distractions, students named close relatives (47%), followed by (disliked) musical pieces (2To/o),competing leisure activities (20%), and finally the weather (10%) as influences that impinge on their practice. I suggest to view goal orientation and external action distraction as habitual perceptions of the practice situation. Practicing in the presence of listeners imposes a specific motivational problem. Children and adolescents report that the "supervision" of practice (mainly by the mother) can be perceived as either stimulating or irritating (e.g., Brokaw, 1988; Sloboda et al., 1991; Barry & McArthur,1994; Harnischmacher, 1995).According to Heckhausen (1989) the extrinsic motivation of an affirmative feedback may possibly corrupt the extrinsic motivation in these children. Furthermore, it must be considered whether or not listening actually reaches the criterion for supervision (e.g., Barry,7992) or of a "live-in-teacher" (e.g., Lehmann, in press). This present study asks if the total number of practice days with listeners influence the situational cognition and the practice at all. In addition to being dependent on the real or perceived situation, motivation is also likely to be influences by dispositional attributions (Heckhausen, 1989). According to Gollwitzer (1988), the motivational mental state includes the decision between alternative actions and unterminated motivational tendencies (e.g., Atkinson & Birch, 1970) which are due to individually perceived competencies and ensuing expectations. A motivationally relevant construct is the self-concept of abilities (cf. Krampen, 1987). The domain-specifi.c self-concept of instrumental playing abilities, defrned as "cognitively and aflective-evaluatively imparted reflection regarding one's individual competence for playing an instrument" (Harnischmacher, 1993, p. 52; also Svengalis, 1978; Austin, 1g88). Among other things, it was shown that music students have differently shaped self-concepts of musical abilities which are in agreement with their identity goals (e.g., becoming a soloist, an instrumental teacher, or a music educator). Instrumentalists with a more positive self concept practiced more intEnsely than instrumentalists with a less positive self-concept; and after a few days of rest instrumentalists with a more positive self-concept already realized their decreasing playing skills (Harnischmacher, 1993). Motivational processes do not imply that the action is indeed followed through to the intended goal (Heckhausen, 1989). According to Kuhl & Beckmann (1gg4), the initiation of an action, the persistence and overcoming of inner action obstacles can be explained through volitional processes.The authors distinguish the disposition of action from that of state orientation. Simplified, action-oriented subjects have it easy considering and choosing between different action tendencies and initiating an action until the intended goal is reached. Conversely, state oriented subjects are

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Harnischmacher

excessively hesitant, ponder when considering different action tendencies, and are self-centered. In connection with instrumental practice, action-oriented music students, tend to plan more and possess a well-structured method of practice. Also, they tend to use more of their time for practice and practice more regularly than state oriented students (Harnischmachet, 1993). Action vs. state orientation and the self-concept of instrumental playing abilities can not only be related to volition and motivation, but these variables can also be understood as personality-related (e.g. Harnischmacher, 1994b, KuhI & Beckmann, 1994). By this, I do not mean flobal, stable dimensions of personality, but specific constructions which to a large extent are based on fundamental learning processes. Concluding, the present study suggests that motivation and volition have an influence on practice behavior of children and adolescents in addition to maturational processes.Maturational processes are implied in age and starting age of instrumental playing. Here, motivation is considered situational (performance preparation vs. no performance preparation) as well as dispositional (self-concept of musical abilities), while volition includes a disposition towards action or state orientation. Note that the claim is not that motivational or volitional influences practice behavior as a while (Harnischmacher, 1993), but only relevant behavior patterns of practice (e.g., Forgas, 1976). The influence of motivational and volitional variables is probably more obvious the less familiar, mote restructured, or more stressful the practice situation is for the student (e.g., Krampen, 1987, for a general frnding outside music; Land, 1979; Dews & Williams, 1989, for music students).

Method
Inuentories In order to understand instrumental practice as an everyday behavior, an extensive survey study was conducted. The inventories concerned practice methods, amounts of practice, and socio-demographic variables. Items regarding practice methods were formulated based on the findings of a recent qualitative study (Harnischmacher, 1995). The other questionnaires consisted ofa short form ofthe Self-Concept Scale of Instrumental Abilities (Harnischmacher, 1993), adapted for children and adolescents. Also, scales for Goal Orientation of Practice, External Action Distraction, and Action Control scale (ACS 90/ Hakemp 90) by Kuhl and Beckmann (1994) were administered. The questionnaires were pilot tested with music students in order to test facevalidity, the students' understanding ofthe questions and their readiness to answer. As a result, some questions were rephrased. The final form of the questionnaire was administered in a pre-test involving 44 students from different music studios between the ages of 9 and 14. Since instrument-specifrc selection effects and effects of confounding variables had to be expected (Harnischmacher, 1995), only woodwincl players were allowed to participate. The observations from this pilot study (Harnischmacher, 1995), namely that children and adolescents are willing to report about their practice very candidly, were generally confirmed.

Effects of individual differences

75

Subjects One hundred and fifty-one woodwind students (main instrument) from five German music studios participated in the main survey. The questionnaire asked the students to give information regarding their practice behavior during the previous week. The return rate for the questionnaires was 657o (N = 142). With 87Vofemales and only 13Vo males, the gender distribution was problematic. In order to exclude possible selection biases and third variable effects, an arbitrary sample of 111 females (N=111) between I to 20 years with an average age of about 14 years (13.62) was examined. All other questionnaires were discarded. On average, the subjects had their first music lessons on their main instrument at an age of 1,0.1years, with an age range from 6 to 77 years. As regards the distribution of instruments played, 82 of the young musicians were learning the flute, 16 the clarinet, 8 the recorder, and 5 were playrng the oboe.

Results
Reliability and discriminant ualidity of the instruments The tests of reliability and discriminant validity yielded first results for the scale for of Instrumental Ability (SCI),External Action Distraction (EAD), Goal Self-Concept of the ACS 90 (1. action orientation Orientation of Practice (GOP), and subscales after failure [AOF], 2. action orientation in planning actions [AOP], 3. action orientation in centeredactivity IAOC]).SeeTable 3.1. Table 3. 1 (internal meansr and standard deviations consistency)r Reliability scores (*) Items for selfconcept of instrumental for unselected and selected abilities (SCI), goal-orientation of practice (GOP)' exterrral action distraction (EAD), and action control scales (AOF' AOP, AOC). Subscale SCI GOP EAD AOF AOP AOC
8tr

12 10x 12 13 10 Items 4'2 5 10 22.8 l7.5 Mean 2.82 3.26 4.81 3.91 4.86 deviation Standard Crontraehs aloha 0.86 0.76 0.71 - 0.81 0.7

6.27 0.88 0.71

reliability values, with Cronbach's Despite the shortnessof the scales,acceptable item pool of EAD and AOC The selected found. 0.86, were and alpha between 0.70 of more than 1.75. scalescontainedonly items with coefficients The next secaionwill demonstrate the discriminant validity of person-oriented scales(scl, AoF, AOP, AOC) through the use of correlations,see Table 3.2.. The correlations confrrmed the expected connection between SCI and action control scales(AOF, AOP, AOC).

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Table 3'2 Correlationsoftheself-conceptscaleofinstrumentalabilities(SCI)with action control scales (AOF' AOP' AOC)' SCI AOF 0.26 AOF AOP

AOC -0.08 -0.37 -0.13 *p< 0.05

T he po sitiv e co rrelati onb etw ee nAo Fan dAo Pscalesisalsomention edbyK uhl between AOC and the other Action and Beckmann (rgsa). ii" ,rusutilr" correlation control variable Jitt"u the AOC scale also functions as Control scales i* ,.-u"kubl". for ex ce s siv e ac tiv is m,i tc anno tbeexclud edtha tth eAo Pan dAo Fva lu esinth e (activism) (cf. KuhI & Beckmann, rrolatility ot describ"^;;;i;-a"L""" present case of g"rr.ru11y ,uii.fu.to"y discriminant validity 1gg4). The low correlations suggests u the ind iv idu als c ales .Itwa sfurthe rexa mi nedto wh atexten ttheva riab lesof (e'g'' related to aspects of the real situati'on situational perception (EAD, GOP) were nu mb er ofp rac tic eda y s,s i bl i n gs)' T her ew asan almostzerocorrel atio nbetw (r eent he = -'09' the external action distraction number of practice days with listeners-and n .s .) ,a nd be twe enr r,r*t" tofpra cti ced aysw ith listen ersa ndgo alori en tat ion(r=of significantly correlate with the number .004). External action distracfion did not items relevant NsJ, separate correlations of siblings (living t"g"th;;t1;-= -.22, n.s.). with the nu1-ber of davs practiced (Nos. 1, 4, 7, g)of tfre daD scale (see Appendix') was a correlations (r < 0.162, n.s')' There with listeners did not show signifrcant during no. 1 ('other people disturb me signi.ficant correlation betwgen item general' In < = (r '32'-p 0'001)' practice") and the number of siblings living together that the two variables u.,o-ption the low correlations confirm the theoret"i.ui ( Go P,EAD)du ,""i b"a hab i tua l i zed situa ti onalp erce ption andsubject ive c ompo ne nts ,wh ic har eon l ypa rti all yrela tedto^..objective,' situatio nal number of siblings at home)' characteristics (e.g.,p,*"ti"" days with listeners' Releuant pr actice activities T he firs ts te pe x amin edwh i chp racticemethod ' sw ere relevantfor th ep resent pr ob lem.Itsh ou ld bere membe redth atthesuppo sed.in fluencesd onot aff ect p ra ctic e be ha vio ras awh ol e (H arnischmacher,lg gs).K ruskal-Wa lli < s'sn onfor significant (p '05) differences parametric analyses of variance were used to test (always, freqrleltly, rarely, never) of in the distributions of the answer categories control scales (AoF, AoP, AOC)' the scores from scl, cop, Bao, and action situational perception (SP) and Table 3.8 shows significant difierences of practice methods (see discussion of personality dispositions (Pp) for the. difi;;;;t that correspond to the short duestiopnalre statem^ents Table 6 for the "ri;;i on practice methods' 9 practice methods descriptions). of the 15 questionndire items to itre SP/PD variables. The following differed significantly (p<.05) with regard (a) At show signifrcant differences: questionnaire it"*s ofiractice methods did not in I repeat the piece a number of times first, I play through the whole piece; &j

AOP O.zs 0.44*

Effects of individual differences

77

succession;(c) I practice etudes; (d) At first, I practice everything slowly; (e) I closely Iook at the music before practicing; (f) I practice forte and piano in a piece right from the beginning.

Table 3.3 personality dispositions (PD) and situational Differences among perception (SP) for individual practice methods Practicemethods
Playing famil. pieces Scales New pieces Warming up Metronome Raising tempo Raising tempo Correcting errors Correcting errors Improvising Improvising Dividing in sections

SP EAD GOP EAD GOP GOP

PD AOC

AOC GOP SCI GOP SCI EAD SCI

Dividine in sections

corr:chi2 7.9549 72.7728 8.3534 8.7974 10.9578 9.1683 9.3520 15.3634 9.2133 8.8676 9.9091 8.9894 9.6627

p vaiue .o47 .005 .039 .042 .012 .027 .025 .001 .026 .031 .019 .029 .021

Practice times Next, the practice times were analyzed separately, depending on whether or not the young musicians were preparing for a performance at the time of the survey. In addition, the various aspects of practice time are examined, determining whether practice was more influenced by age or by motivation and volition. Compared to the group not preparing a performance, the group preparing for performance shows slightly more average practice time (see Table 3.4). With regard to the number of practice days during the pievious weeks the two groups did not differ. However, the differences in practice times between those students with performance preparation and those without were not signifrcant. Previous results suggested that the practice situation (performance preparation) has to be taken into account (e.g., Harnischmacher, 1993). In order to exclude possible third variable effects (e.g., influence of teacher or parents in connection with the performance situation), the practice times in the present case were analyzed by separating the students who were preparing and those who were not preparing a performance. The group "no jrerformance preparation" was on average age 13.6 years old, the group "performance preparation" 13.7 years (F = 1.23, n.s.), and there was no reliable differences in starting ages of music training (both around 10.1 years).

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Harnischmacher

Mean practice

Table 3.4 performance without and with times Concert

(concert) preparation

No concert

Maximum time** Minimum time**

Practi:ce days*n* 1'37 1.08 Days with listeners**" **Minutes of one day Note: *Minutes per day in one wedk, ***related week' to the last in the last week, (PD), of Tables 3.bA and B.bB shows the influence of personality dispositions regression stepwise situational perceptions (sP), and of age, examined in separate, of the variables relating to practice time: ideal time, maximum analyses fo" "uch practice days per and minimum amount of practice per day, and also the number of week. < .05) witl allow to show The results of the stepwise regression analyses (PIN Age and whether practice times are more influenced by age or by PD/SP variables' PD/SP variables did not correlate significantly (r < '11)'

32-:77 14.44 4.69

29.33 TL.4I 4.69

Table 3.5A perceptions Influence of age, personality dispositions (PD), and situational (concert) performance (sP) on practice times in the group without preparation. Results of stepwise regression analyses for practice tim s'
TA oo l fimo I R2

F'

Sis. F

lBeta

s;

1.

Age

EAD
Maximum time

EAD* Ase
Minimum time

. .i.q.9_q_0-' . i_--?,?_qq.... .. j.:9,-2_L0_'. . i-q,_o_g_o ..... i1,9-6_9'. ,-0_q?

-_ ! - - - .. .. .. .. ,. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .t r

i0.984

iI.478

i 0.143

EAD*
Ase

--"--"--'-i'--'-'--"'---"--'r'-'-'

0.qq,8-81.9.-5_-*9'-Q-0-9-... ....j:9.,-2-9p-........i--?'-6-9-9 i-q'-0-99 i i ... io.gs+ iL,z\.!..........i.p.,?_?.,p

0 .1 1 6 9.582 0.003 i0.340 0.994 3.096 0.094 0.002 0.925

Practice davs AOP*

Ase

in the equation(PIN<.05) Note:*Variables

Effects of individual differences

79

Table 3.58 (PD), and situational perceptions dispositions personality age, Influence of (concert) group with perfonnance (SP) on practice times in the preparation. Results of stepwise regtession analyses for practice times.
Tr laql timo D2 Er

S io

Ir

lR of o

l S i r r.T

Age* SCI* Maximum time

0.316

i TS.ZOS iO.OOO iO.SOS i3.369

i0,000

o.aso iiq.-s1s_,. ....i-q.q-0-9 .....i:2.,.?._0-1. ...i_--q.?7.7.. 1_o_,q_0_q

irO.SOO iO.OOZ i0,494 i3.312 i0,002

0.244 Age* SCI Minimum time o.srr EADX Ase*

Practice davs

iq,ep_l _ir_q'oz+. i-_________"-""i

irs.soz io.ooo i-o.osr t-4.802i_q.qp,Q

232.69 0.000 !0.637 0.406 AOF* i0.926 Ase *Variables (PIN < in the equation Note: '05)

4.824
0.144

i0.0,0q
:0.886

The contributions of the individual variables (see Table 3.5) showed the expected results: the lower the self-concept of abilities (SCI) in the performance situation, the higher the estimate of daily ideal amount of practice time. In general' an increase of (EAD). pr"actice time correlated with a lower tendency to external action distraction hh" turrd"rrcy toward goal and action orientation (GOP, AOP, AOF) was associated with longer practice times. under conditions of performance preparation the influence of age is noticeable. The amount explained variance (Rz) for the group preparing for performance differed significantly from that of the group not preparing for performance' In the for performance, the amount of variance explained is ovet 40Vo, gro,rp pr"f*ing between 57o andll%o in the group not preparing for performance' *ftif" ii.t..iu. D imen sional ity of P rac tice in During everyday practice behavior of musicians, practice method.s are not used is not isolation, but in complex methodical combinations. Hence, practice behavior set of complex of a rather characterized by a few ideal typified methods, but consists factor practice methodologies (Harnischmacher, 1993). The following ^explorative practice relevant of for a set analysis will demonstrate if such connections exist variables (see Table 3.3), and whether or not resulting factors can be meaningfully interpreted as basic dimensions describing the practice behavior of music students. i principal Components factor analysis (see Table 3.6) extracted four factors greater than one (Kaiser criterion). Combined, the four factors with an eigenvalue -about 63Vo of the total variance in practice methods, while the remaining explained

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Harnischmacher

Principal

Table 3.6 component factor analysis for selected practice variables

1 2 3
,l

5 6 4 , 8 9

2.01389 1.40000 I.22800 1.01359 0.857t7 0.81657 0.7L2L4 0.53617 0.42247

22.4 1 5 .6 13.6 11 .3 9.5 9 .1 7.9 6.0

Ary

22.4 37.9 5 1.6 62.8 72.4 8L.4 89.3 95.3 100.0

37Voof the variance were not explained by the factor model. For the interpretation of the orthogonal rotated matrix (see Table B.Z), only loadings greater than ,5 and their signs were considered. As a further interpretativl help, a previous factor analysis on practice behavior of music students was considered (Harnischmacher, 1996, p. 1690. In the earlier study, 14 practice variables similar to those in the present analysis revealed 5 practice factors. In the present factor analysis (see table B.Z), the first factor consisted of the following items: (a) 1'I play scales" (no. 2), and (b) 'At first, I warm up during practicing', (no. 4)' It was very similar to the first practice factor already shown for older music students at colleges (Harnischmacher, 1998, p. 169). In both, the present and the preceding study, the first factor describes a practice behavior that presumably primarily seryes for maintenance of perfonnance level. Factor 1 was interpreted as a practice complex that primarily facilitates build-up and maintenance of fundamental technical skills, and it was accordingly referred to as Basic practice. The marker variables of the second factor were: (a) "I play new pieces that I do not know yet" (no. 3), (b) " I practice with a metronome (measure counter)" (no. b), and (c) "I play until I make a mistake which I then correct" (no. ?). Factor 2 was also similar to the second factor of the college student sample (Harnischmacher, 19g3, p. 169). This factor implies some aspects of analysis of music- or instrument-related. technical problems, as well as the mediating control by metronome. This second factor was called Analytical practice. The marker variables of the third factor were: (a) "I gxadually increase the tempo of the pieces (parts)" (no. 6), and (b) "I first split the piece in segments that .I want to practice" (no. 9). This factor *." .l"o interpreted as a type of analytic practice, emphasizing the planned, stepwise, and c_onstructive procedure. The planning aspect plays a role for tempo choice and the determination of the parts to be practiced. Therefore, this third factor is called constructiue practice. The marker variables of the fourth factor were: (a) ,,I play pieces that I play well" (no. 1), and (b) "I also improvise (invent) music,, (no. g). since factor four emphasizes the musical, creative component of practice, it is labeled Creatiue practice.

Effects of individual differences

81

varimax-rotated

factor

Table 3.7 matrix of practice variables practice behavior) Factors

(components

of

lltems .l.Playing known pieces .2.Scales .3.Newpieces .4.Warmingup .5.Metronome .6.Raisingtempo errors .T.Correcting .8.Improvising
.g.Dividine in sections

Basic

Analytical

Constructive

Creative

-0.12 0.86 0.39 0.80 -0.42 -0.04 -0.02 0 .1 4 0 .1 5

- 0 .1 1 ,0.09 0.50 0 .1 1 0.63 0.40 0.76 0 .1 1 -0.09

-0.20 0.04 0.06 0.06 0.20 0.69 -0.08 0.20 0.86

0.74 0.10 -0.09 -0.04 - 0 .1 7

0. r 7
0.23 0.69 - 0 .1 1

In summary, the practice factors corresponded to a sequence of practice phased which is in agreement with a study on soloists (Harnischmacher, 1993, p. 103). The experts' practice was characterized by a division of practice into the sequence of *u"*-rrp, quality maintenance, and build-up. The present factor 1 can be seen as corresponding to the phases of warm-up and quality maintenance. Factor 2 and 3 somewhat correspond to a phase of build-up. Factor 4 seems to be typical for the practice of children and adolescents. The creative factor is consistent with the idea ,,music" in the practice of adolescents is seen as a reward after the work is done ihat (Harnischmacher, 1995). Effects of situational perception and. personality d.ispositions on the d'imensions of practice In the following section, it will be shown to what extent the more complex dimensions of practice (four factors) cln be explained by situational and dispositional variables of motivation and volition. The four practice factors were not influenced by the variable preparing/not preparing for performance (F<1.78, n's')' The theoretically predicted influence of age, starting age, and number of days with listeners was taken into account. The correlations confirmed a connection between practice factor 1 and the variable capturing number of days with listeners (r = '28, p . .os), as well as between practice factor 3 and age (r - .28, p < .05). The starting age did not show a significant correlation with the practice factors. age, and number of days with ANCOVAS with the covariates age, startinl practice factors. The motivation and listeners were conducted for each of the four volition variables (GOP, EAD, AOC, AOP, AOF, SCI) had to be tested individually afber a median-split (see Kuhl & Beckmann, 1994), because of the intercorrelations between some of the ind.ependent variables (see Table 3.2)' In the classical experimental approach, the covariates should be tested first, then the main effects'

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Possible effects of variables of motivation or volition were thus examined only after extracting the influences of age, starting age, and number of days with listeners. For the six factor levels of the motivation and volition variable, the significance level was first set to |Vo and then corrected according to Bonferoni. The strength of the influences was tested in a Multiple Classification Analysis using SPSS. Table 3.8 shows factor /.The covariate "number of days with listeners" and the external action distraction (EAD) had a significant effect on practice factor 1 (Basic Practice).The variable "days of practice with listeners" and EAD explained about L4Voof the variance in practice factor 1. The mean value for factor 1 of the EAD = .27) than the average of the group above the group below the median is higher 1114 (M = median -.19). The group with little inclination to EAD tended to practice consistent with factor 1. The number of days with listeners had a positive influence on factor L.

Results of ANCOVA Sum of squares

Table 3.8 for first factor

("Basic practice")

Source

df

Eta

Beta*

R'?

Covariates Age Starting age Listener present GOP EAD AOC AOP AOF SCI

7.315 0.193 0.650 4.972 0.217 6.002 0.616 2.643 1.385 2.450

3
I 1 1

2.766 0.219 0.738 5.639 0.219 6.807 0.632 2.836 7.482 2.667

0.046 0.641 0.393 0.020 0.641 0.011 0.429 0.096 0.227 0,106 0.04 0.29 0.04 0.22 0.74 0.23 0 .05 0.27 0. 09 0.17 0. 13 0. L7 0 .1 0 0.14 0.r 0 0.10 0.1 0 0.1 0

1 1 1 L 1 1

Note:*Adjusted for independent variables and covariates

Table 3.9 show factor 2. Goal orientation of practice (GOP) had a significant effect on factor 2 (Analytical practice); it also explained abort I4Vo of the variability of this factor (see table 3.9). However, the volition variable (AOC) did not reach the corrected significance level. The GOP group above the median tended to practice more with the methods of factor 2 (M = .42) than the group below the median (M = .2 $ . For factor 3, see Table 3.10. For this factor, only the covariate age was a signifrcant influence, which accounted for about t}Vo of the variance on this factor (see table 3.10). The effects of EAD and AOC did not reach the required level of signifrcance.

Effects of individual differences

88

Table 3.9 Results of ANCOVA for second factor ("Analytical practice") Sum of scruares df F 1.688 0.306 0.953 0.238 7.848 1.693 4.297 0.000 0.015 3. 6 7 4 3 1 r. 7 1 1 1 1 1 1 0.563 0.348 1.084 0.271 8.t22 1.668 4.886 0.000 0.014 3.67r

Source Covariates Age Starting age Listeners present GOP EAD AOC AOP AOF SCI

Eta

Betax

R2

0.592 0.557 0.301 0.604 0.005 0.200 0.030 0,987 0.905 0.058 0.29 0.06 0.25 0.01 0.00 0.16 0.28 0.14 0.24 0.00 0.01 0.20 0 .L 4 0.05 0.07 0.05 0.05 0.08

Note: *Adjusted for independent variables and covariates

Table 3.10 Results of ANCOVA for third factor ("Constructive

practice")

Source Covariates Age Starting age Listeners present GOP EAD AOC AOP AOF SCI

Sum of squares df 7.927 5.L72 0.064 0.228 L.047 3.531 4.767 0.439 2i.972 1.807 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 I 1 1

Eta

Beta*

R2

3.071 6.011 0.074 0.265 L.r47 4.009 5.540 0.505 3.118 L.982

0.032 0.016 0.786 p.608 0.287 0.048 0.021 0.479 0.081 0.163 0.09 0.13 0.30 0.05 0.12 0.t7 0 .1 1 0 .2 7 0.25 0.07 0 .1 8 0.14 0 .1 0 0 .1 2 0.14 0.10 0 .1 3 0.10

Note: *Adjusted for independent variables and covariates

Table 3.11 shows factor 4. For this factor (Creatiue practice), a significant effect of GOP (goal orientation during practice) explained about L2Vo of the variance. The group above the median tended to practice more creatively (M = .36) than the group

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= -.16). The volition variables of the Action Control Scale below the median 1114 (AOP, AOF) did not reach the corrected significance level.

Table 3.11 Results of ANCOVA for fourth factor ("Creative practice")

Sum of squares

Source Covariates Age Starting age Listeners present GOP EAD AOC AOP AOF SCI

df
t

Eta

Beta*

R'?

4.944 I.702 3.072 0.107 7.3L0 0.398 0.663 4.136 4.783 2 . 77 1

1 1 1 1 1 1 I 1 t

1.820 1.879 3.392 0.118 8.074 0.408 0.718 4.538 5.176 2.949

0.149 0.774 0.069 0.732 0.006 0.524 0.399 0.036 0.025 0.089 0.26 0.00 0.14 0.22 0.25 0.20 0.28 0.07 0.09 0.21. 0.23 0.18 0.r2 0.04 0.05 0.07 0.10 0.08

Note: *Adjusted for independent variables and covariates

Discussion
Amount and type of practice could not be explained by motivation and volition variables alone. Some practice methods, such as multiple repetitions oi slow practice are presumably so habitualized (routine activities), that they are not motivationally relevant any more. The practice times in the absence of an anticipated public performance were not influenced by age, but by external action distraction (EAD) and action orientation in planning actions (AOP). This result supports the notion that practice to be the extrinsic "push" of performance preparation--tend times--without influenced by planning and action-oriented aspects of personality. However, the explanatory value of motivation and volition variables was more obvious when subjects were anticipating a performance situation. It is likely that an anticipated performance situation at this age is particularly stress inducing, which explains the influence of external action distraction (EAD) and of variables related to competence and success/failure, such as self-concept of instrumental music ability (SCI) and action orientation after failure (AOF). The observed age influence on performance preparation could be attributed to a habitualized increase of practice time which results from experience with similiar situations. In this situation, the dispositional aspects would only play a minor role (cf. Harnischmacher, 1993). Alternatively, one could hypothesize that the group of young instrumentalists preparing for performance was practicing more because they were at a higher level of instrumental ability than the group which was not preparing for performance. This would create a selection bias by confounding the

Effects of individual differences

gb

distinction of performance preparation with level of performance. Albeit, this is not the case, because all music students in this sample have to perform regularly, regardless of their level of performance. The positive influence of practice days with listeners on Basic practice (factor 1) could imply that other persons involved may help young instrumentalists structure their practice by reminding them of technical exercises or warm-ups. With experience, scales and warm-ups may quickly turn into a routine and become more sensitive to disturbances and are therefore susceptible to distraction or persevering cogaition. In this context, the observation that young instrumentalists with an inclination toward external action distraction practice less scales and warm-ups, makes sense. Analytical practice (factor 2) implies the defrnition of goals and goal orientation, which explains the influence of GOP. Constructive practice (factor 3) is subject to a positive maturational effect (age), while Creative practice (factor 4) is influenced by GOP. The assumed influence of starting age has not been confirmed for the four dimensions of practice behavior, a result which may in the present study be caused by the relatively homogeneous sample of music studio students. A connection between starting age and practice methods may be more likely in more heterogeneous groups such as adult beginners. In sum, complex aspects of practice methods of children and adolescents were more influenced by motivation-relevant aspects of situational perception (GOP, EAD) and less by maturational processes. It is still possible, however, that older have more knowledge about different practice methods. The instrumentalists present results are consistent with the findings of Karmiloff-Schmith (1988), in which the use of knowledge was shown to be an age independent achievement. Further studies are necessary to clarify the relation of habitualized situational cognition and motivation and volition. Maturational processes were assessed with regard to age and starting age, not with regard to the stages of development or practice that individuals had attained. Finally, there are still questions concerning the efficiency of practice (see Lehmann, in press). Future longitudinal studies will determine to what extent the efficiency of practice of young instrumentalists is influenced by the different developmental stages of practice and by motivational and volitional aspects. Author notes I am gratefirl to Harald Jiirgensenand all participants of the Oslo conference for the intense and the numeroussuggestions presentation exchange of experience in response to the of my paper. Special thanks to AndreasLehmannfor his valuablesupportduring the final write-up and to Monika Hennemann for her competent help with the translationof this article. References Atkinson, J. W. , & Rirch, D. A. (1970). A d.ynamic theory of action.New York: Wiley. Austin, J. R. (1988). The effect of musical contest format on self concept, motivation, achievement and attitude of elementary band students. Journal of_Research in Music Education, 36,95 - 107. Barry, N. H. (1992). The effects of practice strategies, individual differences in cognitive style, and gender upon technical accuracy and musicality of student instrumental performance. Psychology of Music, 20, Lt2-I23.

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Barry, N. H. , & McArthur, V. (1994). Teaching Practice Strategies in the Music Studio: A Survey of Applied Music Teachers.Psychologyof Music, 22, 44-55. Brokaw, J. P. (1983).The extend to which parental supervisionand other selected factors are related to achievement of musical and technical-physical characteristics by beginning instrumental music students. (Doctoral dissertation, University of Michigan, 1983). Dissertation Abstracts International, 43, 3252-A Dews, B. , & Williams, M. S. (1989).Student musicians'personalitystyles, stresses, and copingpatterns.Pschology of Music, 17, 37 - 47. Eckes, T. (1990). Situationskognitionen: Untersuchung zlrr Struktur von Situationsbegriffen. Zeitschrift fiir Sozialpsychologie, 2 1, 3, 17L - 188. Ericsson,K. A. , Tesch-Rtimer, C. , & Krampe, R. T. (1993).The role of deliberate practise in the acquisition of expert performance. Psychological Reuiew, 100, 363-406. Forgas,J. P. (1976).The perceptionof social episodes: Categoricaland dimensional representations in two different social milieus. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 34, 199-209. Forgas, J. P. (1983). Episode cognition and personality: A multidimensional analysis. Journal of Personality, 5 1, 34-48. Gollwitzer, P. M. (1988).Motiuationale und uolitionaleBewuf3tseinsloge. Mtinchen, Germany:Ludwig - Maximilian - Universitiit. Habilitationsschrift. Hallam, S. (1995). Professional musicians approaches to the learning and interpretation of music. Psychologyof Music, 23, 1I1 - 128. Harnischmacher, C. (1993).Instrumentales Uben und Aspekte der Persi)nlichkeit. Eine Grundlagenstudie zur Erfassung physischer und psychischer Abweichungendurch Instrumentalspiel. Frankfurt am Main, Germany: Lang. Harnischmacher, C. (1994a). Grundlegende Dimensionen, Progression und Entwicklungsstufen des instrumentalen libens von Kindern und Jugendlichen. In H. Gembris, R. -D. Kraemer & G. Maas (Eds. ). Musikpcidagogische (pp. 481- 484).Augsburg, Forschungsberichte 1993, Germany;WiBner. Harnischmacher, C. (1994b). Handlungstheoretische Perstinlichkeitsforschung in der Musikpsychologie. Uberlegungenzu interdisziplindren Konzepten. In H. Gembris, R. -D. Kraemer & G. Maas (Eds. ), Musikptidagogische Forschungsberichte 1993,(pp.71 - 83).Augsburg,Germany:WiBner. Harnischmacher,C. (1995).Spiel oder Arbeit? Eine Pilotstudie zum instrumentalen Ubeverhaltenvon Kindern und Jugendlichen.In H. Gembris,R. - D. Kraemer, G. Maas (Eds. ), Musikpcidagogische Forschungsberichte 1994, (pp. 41 - 56). Augsburg, Germany: Wi8ner. Heckhausen,H. (L989).Motiuation und Handeln (2nd..edition). Berlin, Germany: Springer. Karmiloff-Schmith, A. (1988).The child is a theoretican,not an inductivist. Mind. andLanguage, S,1-13. King, G. A. , & Sorrentino,R. M. (1983).Psychological dimensionsof goal-oriented interpersonalsituations.Journal ofPersonalityand Social Psychology, 44,140L62. Krampen, G. (1987).Handlungstheoretische Persoenlichkeitspsychologie. Goettingen, Germany: Hogrefe.
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Kuhl, J. , & Beckmann,J. (Eds.). (rgg4). volition and,personality:Action and. state Orientation Toronto/Giittingen: Hogrefe. Land, M' S. (1979). The role of conselling in the career d,euelopment of musicians. A casestudy. Dissertation. New York: Columbia University. Lehmann, A. c. (in press). The acquisition of expertise in music: efficiency of deliberate practice as a moderating variable in accounting for sub-expert performance. In I. Deliege & J A. sloboda (Eds. ), perception and cagnitiin of Music (pp. 165-191). Hove,UK: Erlbaum, Taylor & Francis. (1990). Manturzeweska,M. A biographicalstudy of the life - span developmentof professional musicians.Psychology of Music, 1g,172 - LBg. Ribke, w. (1985).Lernvorgdngebeim Instrumentalspiel. In H. Bruhn, R. oerter & H. Riising (Eds. ), Musihpsychologie. (pp. 227 - 2SE). Miinchen, Germany: Urban und Schwarzenberg. sloboda, J. A. , & Howe, M. J. A. (1991). Biographical precursors of musical excellence:an interview study. Psychologyof Music and, Music Ed,ucation, rg,

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Sloboda, J.A. , Davidson, J.W. , Howe,M. J. A. , & Moore,D. G. (1996). The role of practice in the development of performing musicians. British Journal of Psychology,87, 287-309. Svengalis, J. (1978). Music attitude and the preadolescent male. Dissertation Ab stracts Inte rnational, 39, 4800A (University Microfilms No. Z9 - 029b8). Appendix

self-concept scale of Instrumental playing Abilities (SCI)

(Adapted for children and adolescents; to be answered by indicating agreement to a given statement; possible answer categorieswere alwaJrs,frequentiy, tergly, never. The negativeitems no.2, 3, 5,7 , 9,10, 11, 12 were re-coded j for the analysis . . . . ' . ' . . ' . . My instrumental performanceis rather good. I really have to work on my expression.I think that my abilities for playing an instrument are not sufficient. I have a talent for instrumental music Many people have difficulties with music making, but my problems are particularly obvious. I learn rather quickly on my instrument. I experienceinstrumental music playrng as an effort that I cannot copewell with. compared to others (who have been playing equally long), I am rather good. My performance level is still far away from how I want to play in the future. The progress I am making on my instrument leaves a lot to be desired. When I play my instrument, I notice that I am not very talented. Playing an instrument causesme problems.

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Scalefor Goal Orientation of Practice (GOP)

(For children and adolescents; to be answered by indicating agreement to a given statement; possible answer categories were always, frequentl]t, rarely, never. The negative items no. 3,6,7 were re-coded for the analysis. ) o . . . r r r r . o I mostly like to practicefor a performance. I pick nice piecesI would like to play. I do not feel like making music with others. I prefer to practicepiecesthat I will also play togetherwith others. in concerts' I would participate lf I were asked, I do not like to practicepiecesmuch that afterwardsI only canplay by myself. I mostly hate to practicefor a performance. I like practicing bestwhen I like to perform the piece later for others' I am looking forward to making music with others. during practice. Whether or not I like the piecesI practiceis not important for my perseverance

(For children and adolescents; to be answered by indicating agreement to a given statement; possible answer categories were alwavs, frequently, rarely, never. The negative item no. 9 was re-coded for the analysis' ) . . o r r r o r r When practicing, I am disturbedby others. I find it totally aggravatingwhen I haveto practicepiecesthat I do not like. TV keepsme from practicing. I would practicemore if I were not disturbedby others. I do not like the pieces' I do not practiceeverythingI shouldbecause My other hobbiestake up so much time that I do not get a chanceto practice. me. intelTupts someone I cannotpracticeenoughbecause IfI do not like the piece,I soonstoppracticing. I can almost alwayspracticein peaceand quiet.

Scalefor External Action Distraction (EADI