Effectiveness of Music Practical Examinations

Effectiveness of Music on the Performance of Graduate Occupational Therapy Students During

College student anxiety is rising alarmingly and directly affects academics, occupations, and well-being. Occupational therapy (OT) students encounter a rigorous workload and pressure to become entry-level practitioners. Higher education faculty strive for evidence-based teaching strategies and effective classroom management and are often challenged to promote a positive classroom culture. This quasi-experimental study explored the effect of listening to music during a lab practical examination on the performance of OT graduate students.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Stress; Test Anxiety
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Listening to music

Detailed Description

Through convenience sampling, 68 graduate students in an occupational therapy program were recruited to participate. The quasi-experimental study was conducted at Russell Sage College, in Troy, New York, with approval from the International Review Board Inclusion criteria were male and female first and second-year students, ages 19-34, enrolled in Functional Anatomy and Kinesiology or Physical Agent Modalities. The data was collected during lab practicals in December 2021 and June 2023. Forty-three students signed consent forms to participate. Students sign up for 20-minute time slots in pairs for the practical exam. Each student randomly selects confidential assessment cards and takes turns independently completing their assignment. Each practical contains a grading rubric, and a score of 80 is required to pass. Students either had one private room when an examiner during the practical, and either it was quiet or low 60 bpm music played in the background. Pre and post-outcome measures evaluated each student's state, trait, test anxiety, blood pressure, and heart rate outside the assessment room. State and trait anxiety was measured using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Adults™ by Charles D. Spielberger and the Test Anxiety Inventory by Charles D. Spielberger & Associates. State-Trait Anxiety is cited in over 20,000 articles and is the primary assessment used most often for individuals susceptible to anxiety. The reliability of the State-Trait Anxiety is .86 - .95, and substantial evidence confirms its validity. Mean S-anxiety .59, T- T-anxiety .57 college students of both sexes. The Test Anxiety Inventory measures individual situational anxiety of symptom frequency throughout an exam, like apprehension and nervousness. Remote online survey licenses were purchased to administer the State-Trait Anxiety Adult and Test Anxiety Inventory on each student's laptop. Mind Garden's Transform System collected raw scaled scores. The research team recorded blood pressure and heart rate with the digital Blood Pressure monitor with an upper arm cuff.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 74
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New York
    • Troy, New York, United States, 12180
      • Russell Sage College

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Graduate occupational therapy students enrolled in Functional Anatomy and Kinesiology or Physical Agent Modalities

Exclusion Criteria:

• Students not registered for Functional Anatomy and Kinesiology or Physical Agent Modalities

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Group one with no music; Graduate students with no music
Experimental: Group Two with music; Graduate students listening to music	Behavioral: Listening to music; Students listened to background music during a practical examination of 60 bpm.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
State-Trait Inventory	The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory a self-report questionnaire, follows a Likert scale and measures state and trait anxiety with 40 questions and a maximum score of 80	Day 1
Test Anxiety Inventory	The Test Anxiety Inventory is one of the most frequently used self-reported measures of situational anxiety and symptom frequency throughout an exam, like apprehension and nervousness	Day 1
Blood pressure	The measurement of a systolic and diastolic ratio	Day 1
Heart rate	Measuring beats per minute	Day 1

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Russell Sage College
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Chris Mulligan, Russell Sage College

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): December 7, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): November 28, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): November 28, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 16, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 16, 2023
• First Posted (Estimated): January 1, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): January 1, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 16, 2023
• Last Verified: December 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: RussellSage

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: Consent form, study protocol, data analysis

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No