Browsing by Author "Taulavuori, Sonja"

Objectives. As the population is aging, it is important to support healthy aging. Active musical hobbies, like choir singing, are a promising tool for this. So far, there are only a few controlled studies that explore the benefits of choir singing. The aim of this study was to investigate how choir singing is associated with social support, mood and cognitive performance. In addition, the association between choir singing and musical engagement as well as the associations between musical engagement and social support and mood were examined. Methods. Healthy seniors (N=105) aged 60 years and older (mean age 71 years) participated in this cross-sectional study. Of the subjects, 61 subjects were choir singers and 44 were controls. A majority (70 %) of the subjects were female with, on average, short-cycle tertiary level education. Perceived social support, mood and musical engagement were assessed with questionnaires. General cognition, executive function, working memory and verbal short-term memory were assessed with neuropsychological tests. The association of choir singing with social support, mood, cognitive performance and musical engagement were examined with analyses of covariance (ANCOVA). Associations of musical engagement with social support and mood were examined with correlation analyses. Results. Compared to the control group, the choir singers had higher scores on the Social Provisions Scale, especially in general social support, attachment, social integration and guidance, but not in reassurance of worth, reliable alliance or opportunity for nurturance. There was no difference between the groups on mood or cognitive performance. The choir singers also reported higher musical engagement on almost all scales of the Music Engagement Questionnaire compared to the controls. Musical engagement was associated especially with general social support, social integration and reassurance of worth. Conclusion. This study supports and elaborates on previous evidence of social benefits of choir singing, but not emotional or cognitive benefits. Social characteristics of choir singing are a major advantage compared to other leisure activities. Instead, choir singing does not stand out from other leisure activities with its emotional and cognitive qualities. This study addresses the close relationship between choir singing and musical engagement which in turn, is associated with social support. These findings can be utilized to support healthy aging and in prevention, for example, of loneliness.