CAMRI | Determinants of Anxiety, Depression and Subjective Wellbeing Among Musicians in Denmark: Findings From the ‘When Music Speaks’ Project

Determinants of Anxiety, Depression and Subjective Wellbeing Among Musicians in Denmark: Findings From the ‘When Music Speaks’ Project

A Research Paper by Sally-Anne Gross, published by Scandinavian Journal of Psychology

ABSTRACT

Some studies have suggested that professional musicians may suffer from elevated levels of mental ill health compared to both non-professional musicians and the general public. The aim of this study was to explore the levels of anxiety, depression, and subjective wellbeing among musicians in a country famed for high levels of wellbeing: Denmark. More specifically, we sought to evaluate the impact of age, gender, income, and subjective career status (SCS)–that is, seeing music as one’s main career—on these variables. 986 musicians from a range of career stages and genres (both popular—or rhythmic as it is referred to in Denmark—and classical) completed a survey measuring anxiety and depression using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and measuring subjective wellbeing using Cantril’s self-anchoring scale. Multiple regression models were used to explore the relationship between the four independent variables and our three outcome measure scores. Additionally, the sample was split on the basis of their respective significant predictor variables combined in order to observe between-group differences. Firstly, we found that age, gender, and SCS—but not income—significantly predicted anxiety scores. Being younger, being female, and viewing music-making as one’s main career all predicted higher levels of anxiety. Demographic group comparisons confirmed that younger female musicians who viewed music-making as their main career were particularly at risk in comparison to other groups. Secondly, age (younger) and gender (female) were also predictors of higher depression scores, but SCS status and income category were not. Lastly, age (younger), gender (female), and income (membership of the three lowest income categories) predicted lower scores on the subjective wellbeing measure. The fact that income did not significantly predict anxiety or depression scores suggested that elevated levels of either of these experienced by career-oriented musicians might not relate to income, or at least may not be solely income-related. Our findings contribute towards literature that seeks to better understand the determinants of elevated levels of mental ill health among musicians and towards research into mental health and wellbeing in Demark more generally.

George Musgrave (Goldsmiths), Sally Anne Gross (University of Westminster), Daniel Carney (University of Westminster)

Photo by Jr Korpa on Unsplash

About Sally-Anne Gross

Sally-Anne Gross is both a music industry practitioner and an academic. In 1993 she was the first women to work as a director of Artist & Repertoire at Mercury Records UK, and she chaired the first ever panel on gender in the music industries at ‘In The City’ music conference in Manchester. Sally-Anne has been working in the music industry for nearly three decades, as an artist manager, record label director and international business affairs consultant. In her current role at the University of Westminster, she is the program director of the MA Music Business Management where she teaches Intellectual Property and Copyright Management, Artist & Repertoire and Music Development. In 2016 she founded ‘Let’s Change the Record’ a project that focuses on bridging the gender divide in music production by running inclusive audio engineering and song-writing workshops for people identifying as women or non-binary. Sally-Anne is the co-author of ‘Can Music Make You Sick’ the largest ever study into mental health in the music industry that was funded by the charity Help Musicians UK and published in November 2017. She is interested in working practices in the music industries and the conditions of digital labour and specifically how they impact on questions of diversity and equality. Sally-Anne has four grown up children all of whom work one way or another with music, and although she always identifies as a ‘native’ Londoner, she actually lives in North Hertfordshire.