A phenomenological analysis of the experience of listening to music when upset

Abstract: A review of music therapy literature demonstrates a historical bias toward application of quantitative, experimental research methodologies. Contemporary writers have identified a need for a qualitative approach capable of describing holistically the subjective aspects of therapeutic and aesthetic experience. The research approach of phenomenological psychology as developed at Duquesne University was applied to describe the experience of listening to music when upset. Eight adult subjects were asked to describe a situation when they were upset and listened to music. Tape-recorded interviews, or "protocols", were transcribed and submitted to phenomenological analysis. An "essential description" of the experience was derived from characteristics, or "essences", found to be common across all cases, and an "illustrated description" excerpted quotations from the protocols to illustrate the varying manifestations of each essence. Methodological concerns, implications of the method for music therapy, and suggestions for future research in music therapy based on the findings are discussed.

Keyword(s): Phenomenological-analysis, listening, upset.

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