Managing music performance anxiety: the appraisal theory of emotion as a framework for anxiety regulation

• Ano de defesa: 2023
• Autor(a) principal: Twitchell, Adriana Jarvis
• Tipo de documento: Tese
• Tipo de acesso: Acesso aberto
• Idioma: por
• Palavras-chave em Português: Performance (Arte); Ansiedade
• Link de acesso: https://repositorio.udesc.br/handle/UDESC/18534

Music performance anxiety (MPA) can come in facilitative and debilitative forms. Given this context, it is postulated that the appraisal theory of emotion, originating with Arnold (1960) and Lazarus (1966), can be especially helpful in elucidating factors that contribute to both helpful and harmful anxiety. This dissertation illustrates how appraisal theory can be an appropriate tool for theory oriented MPA regulation, making the cultivation of adaptive MPA and the downregulation of maladaptive MPA more practical, memorable and energy efficient. Chapter 1 presents key appraisal theory concepts followed with a discussion of how the information examined impacts the understanding of MPA, its causes, consequences, and effective methods for regulating it. Chapter 2 demonstrates how emotion regulation models based on appraisal theory can be used as practical tools to orient MPA regulation, helping musicians match regulation strategies to fluctuating performance variables. Chapter 3 explores the implementation of appraisal-theory based strategies in real-world situations. Based on theoretical and practical research oriented by the appraisal theory, it is inferred that the application of its principals in instrumental practice reduces the difficulty of MPA regulation by organizing existing literature on MPA strategies into an integrative framework, illustrating the conditions in which certain strategies work well and explaining why they do. In this way, appraisal theory makes easier and more understandable the task of developing strategy sequences adapted to individual circumstances.