Effects of an intercultural music course on adolescents’ intergroup attitudes in southwest China

ABSTRACT

The value of intercultural music learning on intergroup attitudes has been demonstrated in the literature, such as enhancing intercultural sensitivity and building interethnic friendships. However, the process by which intercultural music learning influences intergroup attitudes has not yet been illuminated. This study investigated the impact of an intercultural music course on intergroup attitudes among middle school students (N = 277) from Yi, Han, Mongolian and Tibetan ethnic groups in a multi-ethnic school in Sichuan province, southwest China. The research tools included questionnaire surveys, reflective journals, semi-structured interviews and observational field notes. The findings revealed that the intercultural music course significantly improved the students’ intergroup attitudes compared with the regular and non-music courses. The findings further identified six process dimensions that helped capture the gradual changes in students’ attitudes towards other groups as well as the cumulative nature of the effects of intercultural music learning. This study sheds light on approaches to using music to learn about, communicate with and appreciate other cultures.

KEYWORDS:

• Intergroup attitudes
• intercultural music learning
• middle school student
• multi-ethnic area
• China

Acknowledgment

We would like to thank Prof. Pei Liu, Prof. Bo Wah Leung, Prof. Victor Fung, Dr. Yang Yang, Dr. Ning Luo, Dr. Lei Wang and Dr. Lok Yin Kwan for their suggestions and thoughtful feedback.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Southwest China is a southern region in the People’s Republic of China. The narrowest concept of southwest China consists of Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan, and Guizhou provinces, whereas the wider definition often includes Guangxi province and western areas of Hunan province. The official government definition of southwest China includes the core provinces of Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan, and Guizhou, in addition to the Tibet Autonomous Region, which has not traditionally been included as part of the region. More than 30 ethnic groups are distributed and coexist in this region, including the Yi, Bai, Zhuang, Dai, Miao, Hui, Han, Tibetan, Lisu, Hani, Lahu, Wa, Naxi, Yao, Jingpo, Blang, Pumi, Nu, Achang, Dulong, Jinuo, and Mongolian ethnic groups.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.

Notes on contributors

Tao Guan

Tao Guan is currently post-doctoral fellow at the College of Music and Dance, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou city, Guangdong province, China. He is interested in intercultural music learning, intergroup attitudes, identity issues (i.e. musical identity, ethnic identity and national identity) and mix-method research in music education. His publication can be found in Identity: An International Journal of Theory and Research, International Journal of Music Education, Chinese Music, People’s Music and Journal of Xinghai Conservatory of Music.

Koji Matsunobu

Koji Matsunobu is currently Assistant Professor, the Associate Head of the Department, and Senior Research Fellow (Assessment Research Centre) at the Education University of Hong Kong. He is also an Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Music, University of Queensland, Australia, a former member of the Board of Directors of the International Society for Music Education (2016–2018), the Fulbright scholar at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He currently serves on the advisory boards of the International Journal of Music Education, the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, and the Korean Association of Qualitative Research. He is particularly interested in spirituality, indigenous knowledge, qualitative research, world music, creativity and mindfulness. His publications can be found in Harvard Educational Review, British Journal of Music Education, Music Education Research, International Journal of Music Education, Journal of Aesthetic Education, Journal of Research in Music Education, and handbooks and edited books.