Parents’ views on the impact of music education on child development and alignment with empirical research /

Open in iSearch

Student Theses

2025

Pan, Yingying

Thesis

In recent decades, music activities have gained popularity among parents, scholars, educators, and policymakers due to their positive impact on children’s holistic development. Participation in music allows children to attain the benefits associated with music education. As suggested by the framework of concerted cultivation, socioeconomic backgrounds may influence parents’ views and decisions regarding children’s music participation. However, limited research has explored parents’ views linked with family backgrounds and how their views influence decisions on children’s music enrollment. Based on the transfer of learning framework, music education can potentially impact near- and far-transfer areas. Researchers often discuss music as a general construct without realizing the wide variety of music activities that exist. Limited research has explored parents’ views on the impact of these specific music activities on various developmental areas and how parents’ views align with empirical research.This dissertation aims to fill these knowledge gaps, namely, parents’ views regarding the impact of music education on child development and their alignment with empirical research. Drawing on the frameworks of concerted cultivation and transfer of learning, my dissertation portfolio includes three studies that address such research gaps.Studies 1 and 2 were survey studies involving 430 parents with young children in Hong Kong. Study 1 investigated children’s participation in extracurricular music activities, the importance parents attribute to music education linked with family backgrounds, and the relationship between parents’ ratings and children’s music participation. Study 2 examined parents’ ratings of the impact of different music activities and their correlation with family backgrounds, their likelihood to enroll children in each music activity, and the relationship between parents’ ratings and the likelihood of enrollment. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, independent t-test, and binary logistic regression. Study 3 was a scoping review mapping the literature concerning music intervention studies that resulted in positive developmental outcomes for young children. Descriptive statistics were calculated and a heatmap was used to demonstrate the findings.This dissertation has six main takeaways in relation to the two theoretical frameworks: (1) Hong Kong parents show positive views on music education and activities, (2) their views differ based on socioeconomic backgrounds, (3) parents’ views are associated with their decisions regarding children’s music participation, (4) associated benefits and children’s age may affect participation in music activities, (5) parents’ views on the impact of music activities align with empirical research, and (6) certain far-transfer research areas require further investigation.This dissertation underscores the essential role of music education in early childhood development by exploring views from Hong Kong parents and connecting with findings from empirical research. The three studies emphasize the need for collaboration among parents, educators, policymakers, and non-profit institutions to foster inclusive music education environments, particularly for low socioeconomic families. More parental workshops and guidance on children’s music learning are advocated. This dissertation establishes a foundation for future research by identifying research challenges and revealing certain research gaps regarding the impact of music education on far-transfer areas

LG51.H43 Dr 2025eb Pany

https://educoll.lib.eduhk.hk/records/vne86NUv