BURNOUT AND ENGAGEMENT IN MUSIC PERFORMANCE STUDENTS ANNA JAŚMINA

338 Pages·2017·4.98 MB·English

BURNOUT AND ENGAGEMENT
IN MUSIC PERFORMANCE STUDENTS

ANNA JAŚMINA ZABUSKA

A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of
the requirements
of the Manchester Metropolitan
University for the degree
of Doctor of Philosophy

Royal Northern College of Music
and Manchester Metropolitan University
2017

Abstract
This dissertation focuses on burnout and engagement in music performance
students. While involvement in music can be detrimental to the health of those
involved, it can also foster their well-being. There has been a growing interest in
the experiences of music students but there is very little research on aspects of
their music-related well-being such as burnout and engagement.1 Not so much is
known about the degrees to which students feel burned-out and engaged, and
whether their demographic characteristics influence their burnout and engagement.
A quantitative study was therefore undertaken to establish the levels of burnout and
engagement in this population, and explore potential differences with respect to
them between music performance students in Australia, Poland and the UK, and
men and women (N=331). With a view to understanding why performance students
burn out or become engaged, and what characterises their experiences of burnout
or engagement, the mixed-method approach was employed. The results from a
quantitative longitudinal study carried out in Australia and the UK (N=124), and the
interviews with students classed as burned-out (N=7) or engaged (N=7) were
combined to identify the factors underpinning the development of burnout and
engagement, and to explore how they are experienced by music performance
students. The findings suggest that performance students display comparatively
low levels of burnout (although one in 10 could be at risk), and moderate degrees
of engagement. The study points to cross-national and sex differences in the levels
of music-related well-being experienced by performance students. Burnout
develops as a consequence of inadequate motivation underlying involvement in
music or limited personal and social resources to support learning. Burned-out
students experience problems with their physical health (but devaluation of music
may be a protective factor) and their overall psychological well-being is negatively
affected. Students are likely to become engaged when music represents their true
values, and when they have personal and social resources facilitating their self-
actualisation through music. Engagement further fuels students’ proactive
approach to learning and resultant progress. The findings form the basis for
practical advice for teachers, institutions and students themselves on how students’
music-related well-being could be protected and enhanced.

1In this thesis, well-being is defined as a state of eudaimonia, whereby one realises one’s potential
through music, is able to cope with the demands of music-making and effective in one’s efforts.
Burnout refers to a syndrome of emotional and physical exhaustion, devaluation and reduced sense
of accomplishment, and engagement is conceptualised as a combination of vigour, dedication and
absorption.
I
Peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations
Peer-reviewed publications
Zabuska, A., Ginsborg, J., & Wasley, D. (in press, 2017). A preliminary comparison
study of burnout and engagement in performance students in Australia, Poland and
the UK. International Journal of Music Education.
Zabuska, A., Ginsborg, J., & Wasley, D. (2014). Engagement and burnout among
music performance students. In K. Jakubowski, N. Farrugia, G. A. Floridou, & J.
Gagen (Eds.), Proceedings of the 7th International Conference of Students of
Systematic Musicology (SysMus14), London, UK: Goldsmiths, University of
London. (Appendix A)
Zabuska, A., Ginsborg, J., & Wasley, D. (2015). Engagement with performance and
burnout among music performance students. In J. Ginsborg, A. Lamont, M. Phillips,
& S. Bramley (Eds.), Proceedings of the Ninth Triennial Conference of the
European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music (ESCOM), Manchester, UK:
Royal Northern College of Music. (Appendix B)
Peer-reviewed conference presentations
Zabuska, A., Ginsborg, J., & Wasley, D. (2017). A comparison of burnout and
engagement in music performance students at conservatoires in Australia, Poland,
and the UK. Paper presented at the International Symposium on Performance
Science (ISPS2017), Reykjavik, Iceland; 30 August – 2 September.
Zabuska, A., Ginsborg, J., & Wasley, D. (2015). Burnout and engagement among
music performance students: A quantitative study. Graduate Award-winning paper
presented at the International Symposium on Performance Science (ISPS2015),
Kyoto, Japan; 2 – 5 September.
Zabuska, A., Ginsborg, J., & Wasley, D. (2014). Engagement and burnout among
music performance students. Paper presented at the 7th International Conference
of Students of Systematic Musicology (SysMus14), London, UK; 18 – 20
September.
Zabuska, A., Ginsborg, J., & Wasley, D. (2015). Engagement with performance and
burnout among music performance students. Paper presented at the Ninth Triennial
Conference of the European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music (ESCOM),
Manchester, UK; 17 - 22 August.

II
Acknowledgements
First of all, I would like to thank Jane Ginsborg for her insightful thoughts and, most
of all, for her unfailing support and patience, and David Wasley for his advice on
statistics and his optimism. I am grateful to Jennifer Rowley for supervising my
research while I was in Sydney and for being enthusiastic about my study. I also
thank Martin Blain and Nick Smith, who oversaw the administrative aspects of my
PhD study.
Collecting data in Australia would not have been possible without Eric
Whittaker’s generous scholarship.
I am especially indebted to those who participated in the research. I am also
thankful to the members of the translation team and all who facilitated data
collections, particularly Anna Nogaj.
I would like to thank my parents for supporting me in my life choices and their
encouragement. Maria and Emilia, thank you for the good times in Manchester.
I will always be grateful to Steve, who supported me all the way through and showed
an enormous deal of patience and understanding when I was busy doing research
and working on this thesis.

III
Table of contents
Chapter 1. Introduction ..................................................................................... 1
1.1 The thesis and me..................................................................................... 5
1.2 Structure of the thesis ............................................................................... 6
Chapter 2. Literature review, rationale for the research and research
questions ........................................................................................................ 8
2.1 Literature review........................................................................................ 8
2.1.1 Burnout and engagement 8
2.1.2 Burnout and engagement in the context of music performance
education 34
2.1.3 Summary: gaps in the literature 49
2.2 Methodology: overview and rationale ...................................................... 53
2.3 Reflexivity ................................................................................................ 54
2.4 Ethical considerations ............................................................................. 55
2.4.1 Quantitative phase (Studies I and II) 56
2.4.2 Qualitative phase (Study III) 58
2.5 Summary of the chapter .......................................................................... 60
Chapter 3. Establishing and comparing levels of burnout and engagement in
Australia, Poland and the UK (Study I) ................................................................ 61
3.1 Background ............................................................................................. 61
3.2 The present study ................................................................................... 67
3.3 Method .................................................................................................... 68
3.3.1 Respondents 68
3.3.2 Measures 69
3.3.3 Data analysis 73
IV
3.3.4 Procedure 75
3.4 Results .................................................................................................... 76
3.4.1 Preliminary analyses 76
3.4.2 Burnout 76
3.4.3 Engagement 80
3.5 Discussion .............................................................................................. 82
3.6 Limitations and further research ............................................................. 87
Chapter 4. The role of psycho-social factors in burnout and engagement: A
longitudinal test of BPNT (Study IIa); Longitudinal effects of burnout and
engagement on physical health (Study IIb).......................................................... 91
4.1 Literature review ..................................................................................... 91
4.1.1 BPNT in the context of music education 91
4.1.2 Burnout and engagement, and physical health 94
4.2 The present studies ................................................................................ 95
4.3 Method .................................................................................................... 96
4.3.1 Design 96
4.3.2 Respondents 97
4.3.3 Measures 98
4.3.4 Procedure 101
4.3.5 Data analysis 102
4.4 Results .................................................................................................. 107
4.4.1 Study IIa: The application of BPNT to burnout and engagement 107
4.4.2 Study IIb: The effects of burnout and engagement on physical health
115
V
4.5 Discussion ............................................................................................. 120
4.5.1 Study IIa: The application of BPNT to burnout and engagement 120
4.5.2 Study IIb: The effects of burnout and engagement on physical health
129
Chapter 5. A qualitative examination of burnout: Interviews with burned-out
students (Study IIIa); A qualitative examination of engagement: Interviews with
engaged students (Study IIIb) ............................................................................ 132
5.1 Background ........................................................................................... 132
5.2 The present studies ............................................................................... 132
5.3 Methods ................................................................................................ 133
5.3.1 Interviewees 133
5.3.2 Procedure 135
5.3.3 Interview guide 137
5.3.4 Data analysis 138
5.4 Analysis and discussion ........................................................................ 140
5.4.1 Burned-out students 140
5.4.2 Engaged students – “I knew what I wanted and I went ahead and did
it” (Kyle) 175
5.5 General discussion................................................................................ 210
5.5.1 Summary of findings 210
5.5.2 The findings in the light of qualitative research on burnout and
engagement: a summary 215
5.5.3 The findings in the light of the qualitative research in music education:
a summary 217
5.5.4 Methodological limitations 219
VI
5.5.5 Further research 220
Chapter 6. General discussion ..................................................................... 221
6.1 Summary and triangulation of findings .................................................. 221
6.1.1 Research question 1: What levels of a) burnout and b) engagement
are experienced by music performance students? 221
6.1.2 Research question 2: To what extent are differences in levels of
burnout and engagement, if any, attributable to a) differences between the
countries in which music performance students undertake their training and
b) the sex of the student? 221
6.1.3 Research question 3: What factors contribute to burnout and
engagement in music performance students? 222
6.1.4 Research question 4: How do music performance students
experience burnout and engagement? 223
6.2 Practical applications ............................................................................ 224
6.2.1 Practical advice for students 225
6.2.2 Practical advice for teachers 227
6.2.3 Practical implications for institutions 230
6.3 Limitations of the research .................................................................... 232
6.4 Further research directions ................................................................... 234
References ........................................................................................................ 236
Appendices ........................................................................................................ 288

VII
List of tables
Table 2.1 Subscales and groups targeted by selected measures of burnout ....... 12
Table 2.2 Subscales and groups targeted by selected measures of engagement ...
............................................................................................................................. 18
Table 2.3 Aims and objectives of the research ..................................................... 51
Table 3.1 Demographic characteristics of the respondents ................................. 68
Table 3.2 Scores for global burnout and engagement, and their subscales for the
total sample, and Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for the English and Polish versions
of the questionnaires ............................................................................................ 77
Table 3.3 Descriptive statistics and tests of comparisons for global burnout and
engagement, and their subscales by country ....................................................... 79
Table 3.4 Descriptive statistics and tests of comparisons for global burnout and
engagement, and their subscales by sex ............................................................. 81
Table 4.1 Response rates by country, type of school, and validity and completeness
at T1 and T2 (in numbers) .................................................................................... 97
Table 4.2 Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for all measures .................................. 101
Table 4.3 Descriptive statistics for perceptions of the tutor, need satisfaction,
burnout and engagement, general physical health and MS pain at T1 and T2 for
T1-2 respondents ............................................................................................... 108
Table 4.4 Bivariate correlations between perceptions of the tutor, need satisfaction,
and burnout and engagement at T1 and T2 for T1-2 respondents ..................... 109
Table 4.5 Hierarchical regression analyses for predicting need satisfaction ...... 110
Table 4.6 Hierarchical regression analyses for predicting burnout ..................... 112
Table 4.7 Hierarchical regression analyses for predicting engagement ............. 114
Table 4.8 Bivariate correlations between burnout and engagement, and general
physical health and MS pain at T1 and T2 for T1-2 respondents ....................... 116
VIII