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Assessment of Music Performance Anxiety in Late

Childhood: A Validation Study of the Music
Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents
(MPAIA)
Margaret S. Osborne and Dianna T. Kenny
University of Sydney
Richard Holsomback
Pine Tree Independent School District
The Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents (MPAIA), the

first standardized measure of music performance anxiety (MPA) for adolescents, was developed using an Australian sample of 381 talented young
musicians, ages 12 to 19 years. This study validates the MPAIA on a
younger sample of 84 band musicians from the United States, ages 11 to 13
years. The MPAIA was reliable (Cronbachs .91) and valid for this
sample. Construct validity was demonstrated by significant positive relationships with measures of social phobia and trait anxiety. These results are
comparable to the findings of the original sample and support the use of this
instrument as a screening tool for MPA in young musicians.
Keywords: music performance anxiety; assessment; adolescents; cross-validation
Research into the developmental trajectory and phenomenology of music

performance anxiety (MPA) in children and pretertiary adolescents has been
impeded by a lack of empirically robust, reliable, and valid self-report
measures of MPA for this age group. Prior to work by Osborne and Kenny
(2005), who developed the first reliable and valid self-report measure of
MPA for use specifically with young musicians ages 12 to 19 years, only
Margaret S. Osborne and Dianna T. Kenny, Australian Centre for Applied Research in
Music Performance, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia; Richard Holsomback, Pine Tree Independent School District, Pine Tree, Texas.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Margaret S. Osborne,
Australian Centre for Applied Research in Music Performance (ACARMP), Sydney Conservatorium of Music C41, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 2006.
E-mail: d.kenny@fhs.usyd.edu.au
312
International Journal of Stress Management
2005, Vol. 12, No. 4, 312330
Copyright 2005 by the Educational Publishing Foundation

1072-5245/05/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/1072-5245.12.4.312
Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA
313
three studies relevant to exploring MPA in children and early adolescents had
been published (Maroon, 2003; Ryan, 1998, 2004). These studies developed
research-specific measures of MPA without presenting any data on their
psychometric properties.
In their initial investigation into the psychometric properties of a 15-item
Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents (MPAIA), Osborne
and Kenny (2005) obtained data from 381 elite young musicians, ages 12 to
19 years, to investigate the factor structure, internal reliability, and construct
and discriminant validity of the MPAIA. The scale demonstrated good
internal consistency (Cronbachs .91). Factor analysis identified three
factors, accounting for 53% of the variance. A three-factor solution provided
the best fit to the data, which characterized MPA according to Somatic and
Cognitive Features (descriptions of the physical manifestations of performance anxiety, worry, and fear of making mistakes), Performance Context
(preference for solo or group performances and nature of the audience), and
Performance Evaluation (evaluation from both the audience and performer, and
the consequences stemming from those, particularly when a mistake is made).
Test validation is a continual process that requires replication to determine whether the results obtained from one group of participants can be
generalized across different populations and circumstances (Burns, 1994). In
order to extend the use of the MPAIA with students of a different demographic, this study investigated the psychometric properties of the MPAIA
with younger musicians, ages 11 to 13 years. Two well-known, standardized
self-report measures were once again administered with the MPAIA to
determine levels of trait and social anxiety. Given previous research into
childhood (Maroon, 2003; Ryan, 1998, 2004), adolescent (Osborne & Kenny,
2005), and adult MPA (Kenny, Davis, & Oates, 2004; Lehrer, Goldman, &
Strommen, 1990; Maroon, 2003), the MPAIA was hypothesized to demonstrate a moderate to strong, positive correlation with trait anxiety. Osborne
and Kenny (2005) also found that MPA was more specifically related to
social anxiety than trait anxiety with stronger positive correlations between
the MPAIA and social phobia measures than trait anxiety. Results on the
Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children (SPAIC; Beidel, Turner,
& Morris, 1998) suggested potentially higher rates of social phobia diagnosis
(between 6% and 21%) than those found in most adolescent community
samples (between 1% and 2%; Anderson, Williams, McGee, & Silva, 1987;
Essau, Conradt, & Petermann, 1999; Kashani & Orvaschel, 1990; Maroon,
2003). Thus, it was further hypothesized that there would be a stronger
positive correlation between the MPAIA and social anxiety than between
MPAIA and trait anxiety and that levels of potential social phobia diagnosis
would again exceed those in the general community.
Further evidence for the validity of the MPAIA can be determined by
investigating patterns of scores according to gender, age, and level of musical
314
Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback
ability. There are significant gender differences in trait anxiety, social anxiety, and MPA in children and adolescents (Beidel, Turner, Hamlin, & Morris,
2000; Essau et al., 1999; Ford, Goodman, & Meltzer, 2003; Huston, 2001;
Kashani, Orvaschel, Rosenberg, & Reid, 1989; Lewinsohn, Gotlib, Lewinsohn, Seeley, & Allen, 1998; Morris & Masia, 1998; Ryan, 2004; Steiner,
1998). Previous research has found that women have higher levels of MPA
than do men (Huston, 2001; Steiner, 1998) and that adolescent girls obtained
significantly higher MPA scores than boys (Osborne & Kenny, 2005).
Therefore, it was expected that girls in late childhood would report significantly greater MPA than would boys.
The development of formal operational thought is a characteristic cognitive change associated with the progression from childhood to adolescence
(Piaget, 1970). These changes include an increase in retrospection and
self-evaluation. Formal operational thought tends to develop in areas in
which the adolescent is greatly interested and involved. The cognitive skill of
formal operations allows adolescents to imagine other peoples thoughts,
which can lead some to mistakenly believe that others are as preoccupied
with their thoughts and appearance as are the adolescents themselves. This
can create anxiety and self-criticism in some adolescents (Kenny, 2000).
Adolescence is also characterized by a decreased satisfaction with family,
which leads to peers becoming the focus of attention and increased social
interpersonal anxiety (Kashani et al., 1989). Given that adolescents are also
more likely to evaluate themselves in terms of academic and other achievements (Heaven, 2001), it was expected that levels of MPA would increase
with age. Further, the greater the commitment to music, the greater the
expectation from self and others regarding performance standard and quality,
another component that may lead to increases in performance anxiety.
METHOD
Participants (United States)
Participants were 84 children (43 boys and 41 girls) ranging from 11 to

13 years of age from beginner Grade 6 (n 38) and Grade 7 (n 46) band
classes in the city of Pine Tree, TX (hereafter referred to as the American
sample). Most students learned music within the standard school curriculum,
with only a few students engaged in private music lessons. They participated
in music classes for 40 min a day and had formal assessments three to four
times within a 6-week marking period. The majority of students (95%) were
born in the United States; the other 5% were born in Mexico. Most students
spoke English as their main language at home (93%); 6% spoke Spanish
only. One student spoke both English and Spanish.
315
Procedure and Measures
The study was introduced to the class by the band music teacher.
Students completed questionnaires during class time.
The following measures were taken:
1. Demographics: age, gender, language spoken at home, principal and
other instruments, length of time studied, time practiced each day,
desire to be a professional musician, importance of music in the
family, age first performed in front of audience, pattern and frequency
of performing.
2. (MPAIA; Osborne & Kenny, 2005): The MPAIA was designed for
use with adolescents to assess the somatic, cognitive, and behavioral
components of MPA (Cox & Kenardy, 1993; Nagle, Himle, &
Papsdorf, 1989). Fifteen items measured the somatic (e.g., Before I
perform, I get butterflies in my stomach), cognitive (e.g., I often
worry about my ability to perform), and behavioral (e.g., I would
rather play on my own than in front of other people) characteristics
of anxiety, which were answered on a 7-point Likert-type scale
ranging from 0 (not at all) to 6 (all of the time).
3. StateTrait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC; Spielberger,
1973): The trait anxiety scale of the STAIC measures relatively
stable individual differences in the tendency to experience anxiety.
This standardized test was used to validate the MPAIA and to
provide a comparison with standardized norms. This measure has
modest stability with fourth-grade, fifth-grade, and sixth-grade
schoolchildren (6-week testretest interval for boys .65 and for
girls .71) and satisfactory internal consistency estimates (boys
.78, girls .81; Spielberger, 1973).
4. SPAIC (Beidel et al., 1998): This measure was included to examine
the relationship between MPA and social phobia. The instrument
screens for maladaptive social anxiety in social encounters and
settings, assesses information on the intensity of distress, and indicates possible social phobia diagnoses in children ages 8 to 14 years.
The SPAIC successfully differentiates children with social phobia
from those with other anxiety disorders (Beidel et al., 1998). The
SPAIC has very high stability and internal consistency (Beidel et
al., 1998). Normative data for the SPAIC is taken from research
originally quoted in the test manual and later published by Beidel et
al. (2000) using a sample of 249 children both with (n 63) and
without social phobia diagnoses, with a mean age of 10.8 years
(SD 1.5 years), ranging from 8 to 14 years.
316
RESULTS
Sample students started learning musical instruments at 9 years of age

(SD 2.66 years) and had been studying their major (principal) instrument
for an average of 2.13 years (SD 2.17). They practiced their major
instrument for an average of 1 hr 4 min a day (SD 0.31 minutes). Eighteen
percent of students indicated they wanted to be professional musicians, 50%
were unsure, and 32% did not want to be professional musicians. Student
performance patterns are shown in Table 1. Means and standard deviations
for selected demographic characteristics are presented for the current sample
Table 1. Summary of Demographic Characteristics for American and Australian Samples by
Sample Group
Characteristic
Age
M
SD
Gender
Boys
n
%
Girls
n
%
Age first started learning instrument
M
SD
Years learning major instrument
M
SD
Time practicing per day (hours:minutes)
M
SD
Desire to be professional musician
(% of sample)
No
Yes
Dont know
Frequency performing in front of other
people (% of sample)
At least once a week
Once a month
Each school term (4 times a year)
Each semester (2 times a year)
Once a year
Performance pattern (% of sample)
Solo only
Mostly solo, some ensemble
Mixed solo, ensemble
Mostly ensemble, some solo
Ensemble only
1113 years
American
1113 years
Australian
1419 years
Australiaan
12.10
0.75
12.49
0.64
15.36
1.13
43
51
53
45
71
39
41
49
64
55
110
61
9.07
2.66
6.33
2.20
7.10
2.84
2.13
2.16
4.93
2.38
7.01
3.26
1:04
0:31
1:12
1:06
1:39
1:21
32
18
50
12
43
45
10
51
39
70
7
0
13
10
25
36
27
8
4
22
44
27
6
1
0
39
6
46
9
6
29
31
29
5
7
28
30
31
5
317
and compared against an Australian sample of three performance high

schools in the city of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, from Osborne
and Kenny (2005) in Table 1. We refer to these samples as the American
sample and the Australian sample for the remainder of the article.
Descriptive statistics for all measures used in the study as well as
normative data taken from test manuals are presented in Table 2. The
distribution of MPAIA scores was normal. Mean scores (with standard
deviation error bars) are presented graphically by sex, age, and sample group
for the MPAIA and SPAIC in Figures 1 and 2, respectively.
The American students performed significantly more frequently than Australian students, 2(8, N 375) 104.58, p .001. The Australian students had
significantly greater desire to be professional musicians than the American
students, 2(4, N 380) 36.01, p .001. MPA was found to differ
significantly by both desire to be a professional musician, F(2, 371) 12.74, p
.001, and sample group, F(2, 371) 24.66, p .001. As Figure 3 shows,
students reported lowest MPA when they desired to be a professional musician.
This pattern was consistent for all three sample groups. The American students
reported the lowest MPA, followed by the 11- to 13-year-old Australian group,
with the 14- to 19-year-old Australian group recording the highest MPA scores.
Trait anxiety also demonstrated significant differences according to desire to be
a professional musician. The American students who indicated they wanted to be
professional musicians demonstrated significantly lower trait anxiety (as measured by
the STAIC) than students who indicated either No or Dont know, F(2, 81)
3.12, p .05 (see Figure 4). In the Australian students the pattern of trait anxiety
scores (as measured by the State Trait Anxiety Inventory for adults; Spielberger,
1983) showed a markedly different pattern by desire to be a professional musician
(see Figure 5) compared with that of the American students, and each other. The 14to 19-year-old students scored significantly higher on average than the 11- to
13-year-olds, F(1, 290) 8.74, p .01. The 11- to 13-year-old Australian students
scored highest in trait anxiety if they answered No to the question of wanting to be
a professional musician. The mean score for students who answered Yes was
slightly lower, with students answering Dont know scoring the lowest. Scores for
the 14- to 19-year-old students were in an opposite pattern to the American students.
Students scored highest in trait anxiety when they answered Yes, and lower when
they answered either No or Dont know.
Internal Consistency
Cronbachs alpha was used to determine internal consistency. Itemtotal

correlations were examined, and items with itemtotal correlations that were
negative or below .3 were deleted to improve the reliability of each scale (de
32.53
10.59
23.4
10.2
32.46
36.7
40.17
10.43
26.8
15.1
33.49
38.0
MPAI-A
SPAI-C
With social phobia
No social phobia
STAI-C
Norm
MPAI-A
SPAI-C
With social phobia
No social phobia
STAI-C
Norm
20.37
7.54
9.8
8.4
6.94
6.68
20.30
10.48
7.6
7.6
8.48
6.32
SD
285
029
2254
077
041
2058
Range
1113 years, American
41
37
41
43
39
43
54.77
8.62
Girls
43.03
11.64
21.36
6.71
16.96
11.33
SD
695
030
799
052
Range
1113 years, Australian

Boys
64
58
53
45
54.50
14.45
48.35
4.85
20.56
8.64
20.72
4.34
SD
393
132
788
015
Range
1419 years, Australian
110
29
71
13
Note. Norms are given in italics. MPAI-A Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents; SPAI-C Social Phobia and Anxiety
Inventory for Children; STAI-C State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children.
Scale
Table 2. Descriptive Statistics for All Scales by Group and Gender
318
319
Figure 1. Mean Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents Scores for American and
Australian Samples by Age. Vertical Bars Represent Standard Deviations.
Vaus, 1995). The same 15 items that were decided upon to give the most
internally consistent measure in the Australian sample also provided the best
result with the American sample, yielding a Cronbachs alpha of .91.
Criterion Validity
A series of two-way between-groups analyses of variance were conducted for each of the MPAIA and SPAIC scales. The independent
Figure 2. Mean Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children Scores for American and
Australian Samples by Age. Vertical Bars Represent Standard Deviations.
320
Figure 3. Music Performance Anxiety by Desire To Be Professional Musician and Sample
Group. MPAIA Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents.
variables were gender and a variable that combined age groups and country
into three groups as follows (1113 years American; 1113 years Australian;
14 19 years Australian). Gender and sample group differences were explored for each of the three dependent measures. Because Levenes test of
Figure 4. Trait Anxiety by Desire To Be Professional Musician for American Students.

STAIC StateTrait Anxiety Inventory for Children.
321
Figure 5. Trait Anxiety by Desire To Be a Professional Musician for Australian Students.

STAI StateTrait Anxiety Inventory.
equality of error variances was violated for the MPAIA and SPAIC, a more
stringent probability value of .025 was adopted to interpret the observed
relationships. The MPAIA showed significant main effects for both gender,
F(1, 372) 13.91, p .001, and sample group, F(2, 372) 25.17, p .001
(see Figure 1). Results for the SPAIC showed a significant interaction
between these variables, F(2, 215) 6.80, p .01 (see Figure 2). The
number of students meeting screening criteria for social phobia in Table 3
shows equivalent rates of unlikely and possible social phobia across both
11-to-13-year age groups.
Table 3. Number and Percentage of Students Meeting Screening Criteria for Social Phobia
on the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children (Cutoff Score 18)
1113 years
American
Screening criteria
1113 years
Australian
1419 years
Australian
No.
No.
No.
Unlikely social phobia

Possible social phobia
29
10
Boys
74
26
32
13
71
29
13

31
6
Girls
84
16
50
8
86
14
20
9
69
31

60
16
Total
79
21
82
21
80
20
33
9
79
21
100
322
Pearsons correlation coefficients between the MPAIA, STAIC Trait, and

SPAIC are presented for boys, girls, and total sample in Table 4. These
relationships were all significant and positive, with the exception of correlations
between MPAIA and SPAIC for 14- to 19-year-old Australian boys.
DISCUSSION
The aim of this study was to cross-validate a new measure of MPA in

adolescents with a younger sample of music students. This study builds
on previous research with elite adolescent musicians in Australia by
examining data from a new sample of young American band musicians in
Grades 6 and 7.
Reliability
The results demonstrated that the MPAIA is a psychometrically robust

measure, with very good internal consistency ( .91) for this younger age
group. This same level of internal consistency was achieved using the
Australian sample.
Validity
Further support for the validity of the MPAIA was shown by the
significant differences in levels of MPA according to musical ability. AmerTable 4. Correlations Between Music Performance, Trait, and Social Anxiety Scores
for All Groups
1113 years American
Gender
Boys
MPAI-A
STAI-C
Girls
MPAI-A
STAI-C
Total
MPAI-A
STAI-C
1113 years
Australian
1419 years
Australian
SPAI-C
STAI-C
SPAI-C
SPAI-C
.56**
.54**
.63**
.60**
.34
.57**
.49*
.70**
.33*
.41*
.56**
.51**
.65**
.38**
.52**
Note. STAI-C State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children; SPAI-C Social Phobia and
Anxiety Inventory for Children; MPAI-A Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents.
* p .01. ** p .001.
323
ican students who were less advanced in their musical training reported
significantly lower MPA on the MPAIA than the 11- to 13-year-old Australian group, a more highly trained and selective group of musicians. Thus,
the pattern of MPAIA results across the American students and each of the
Australian student groups suggests that this measure discriminates levels of
MPA according to the musical skill of the performers. Students with less
musical training, who engage in less technically demanding performances,
scored significantly lower on the MPAIA than highly trained musicians of
the same age who had extensive music training and performance experience.
Wilsons (2002) three dimensional model of performance anxiety can
help explain this finding. Three variables are deemed to play important roles
in the experience of distressing anxiety: the performers trait anxiety, or
constitutional and learned tendency to become anxious in response to socially
stressful situations; the degree of task mastery of a performed piece; and the
degree of situational stress high anxiety is more likely to be experienced in
situations in which social or environmental pressures are high. Performance
anxiety may exert either an enhancing or a detrimental effect on performance
depending on the interaction between these three factors. For example, an
individual who is high in trait anxiety is likely to perform best using an easy,
well-prepared piece in a relaxed environment, whereas a performer who is
low in trait anxiety is likely to perform better if the piece is challenging and
performed in an evaluating environment such as an exam or competition. In
our samples, the performance context (i.e., situational factors) of the American and Australian students were different. The Australian students performed under conditions of higher expectations of excellence, compared with
the more relaxed performance environment of the American students. It is
plausible that the more challenging environment of the Australian students
may have increased the fear and likelihood of negative evaluation of their
performance and that any potential consequences of negative evaluation
would be more salient to them. Previous research has demonstrated that the
fear of negative evaluation of a musical performance, and any potential
negative consequences that may result, are key predictors of MPA (Osborne
& Franklin, 2002).
The pattern of MPAIA scores across the American and Australian
samples were very similar, although there were marked differences between
the two countries in the amount of self-reported MPA. Again, the musical
scholastic differences between the American and Australian students may
explain the difference in mean MPAIA scores. Those students who reported
that they wanted to be professional musicians had lower scores, irrespective
of country of origin, compared with those who indicated No or Dont
know. It is possible that students reject or are uncertain of a career as a
professional musician because of the discomfort associated with high MPA.
Alternatively, it is possible that students with professional career goals are
324
better performers and have greater expectations of success. These findings

are consistent with research into goal acceptance and performance in elite
sports performance. For example, Hardy, Maiden, and Sherry (1986) found
that increases in cognitive and somatic anxiety were associated with reduced
goal acceptance and performance. Burtons (1983) cognitive theory suggests
that performance goals assist athletes in forming realistic expectations, which
result in optimal levels of confidence, cognitive anxiety, and motivation and,
ultimately, enhanced performance (Gould, 2001). Of interest, professional
musicians have significantly lower MPA than student or amateur performers
(Steptoe & Fidler, 1987).
In the American students, the V-shaped pattern of lower anxiety scores
for students who wanted to be professional musicians compared with higher
scores for those answering No and Dont know were consistent across
their scores for MPA (see Figure 3) and trait anxiety (see Figure 4). Thus, in
younger students undertaking general music studies, there is no differentiation in the pattern of trait anxiety or MPA according to whether or not they
desired to be a professional musician. In contrast, Sydneys music students of
the same age who did not want to be professional musicians tended to report
the highest trait anxiety (see Figure 5), although these differences were not
significant compared with the nonaspiring groups. Circumstances in which
failure is experienced or an individuals personal adequacy is evaluated (e.g.,
in this case performing a piece of music in front of an audience or examiners)
are generally more threatening to persons with high trait anxiety (Speilberger,
1983). Therefore, the pattern of scores for the American students, and the
No and Yes answers for 11- to 13-year-old Sydney students, fell in the
expected direction. A career as a professional performer involves continued
evaluation by experts, peers, and audiences and would be potentially more
threatening to a person with high trait anxiety than low trait anxiety. The
opposite pattern of results in the 14- to 19-year-old students is perplexing.
Trait anxiety is a general predisposition to perceive stressful situations as
dangerous or threatening. This may mean that trait anxiety is not influenced
to the same extent as MPA by the motivational effects of success expectancies and goal directedness previously hypothesized to explain the pattern of
results for MPA. Another interpretation of this pattern of results may be
found in cognitive developmental theory. Development of formal operational
thought in mid-adolescence is accompanied by an increase in retrospection
and self-evaluation in areas in which the adolescent is greatly interested and
involved, which is likely to enhance anxiety and self-criticism. Perhaps the
trait-anxiety measure assessed the effect of this cognitive change.
There was a significant difference between groups in the performance
frequency (performance exposure), with the American group performing
almost 3 times as frequently as either of the Australian groups. Anxiety
management programs for children and adolescents typically incorporate
325
exposure as a means to challenge thoughts by way of hypothesis and reality

testing (Velting, Setzer, & Albano, 2004). Indeed, exposure is considered the
key element in the treatment of any anxiety-based disorder (Albano, Causey,
& Carter, 2001; Barrios & ODell, 1998). It is therefore possible that greater
performance exposure contributed to the lower anxiety in the American
students.
Consistent with the earlier findings, moderate, positive, and significant
correlations were obtained between the MPAIA and measures of trait and
social anxiety. The hypothesis that scores on the MPAIA would correlate
more strongly with social anxiety than trait anxiety was not supported.
However, because the scores on the MPAIA were low in the American
students, one would not expect elevations in either trait or social anxiety.
Alternatively, students with lower MPA scores do not obtain scores high
enough on either general or specific social anxiety measures to be discriminated from trait anxiety. The positive and significant Pearsons correlation
coefficients between the MPAIA, STAIC Trait, and SPAIC were as
expected, except for MPAIA and SPAIC scores for 14- to 19-year-old
Australian boys. This latter result is not surprising given that all 13 boys in
that group who completed the SPAIC scored in the unlikely social phobia
range. Of interest, the hypothesis that MPA would correlate more strongly
with social phobia than trait anxiety was not supported in the American
group. Moderate, positive, and highly significant correlations were obtained
for both boys and girls on the MPAIA with the STAIC and SPAIC. The
11- to 13-year-old Sydney group showed a different pattern, in which the
relationship for boys on the MPAIA and SPAIC, while comparable to that
of the American group, was almost twice that of 11- to 13-year-old Australian girls.
Presence of Social Phobia
The distribution of scores on the SPAIC across all groups (apart from
14- to 19-year-old girls) was equivalent to, or lower than, the distribution of
scores in the norm group that did not have social phobia. It is surprising, then,
to find that the American sample replicated our earlier findings of 21%
qualifying for possible social phobia diagnosis. Although adolescent community prevalence rates of social phobia range between 1.4% and 1.6%
(Essau et al., 1999; Kashani & Orvaschel, 1990), we interpret these findings
as evidence of diagnostic inflation caused by the self-report methodology
used to determine levels of social phobia. The authors of the SPAIC
cautioned users of the risk of obtaining false positives on this test depending
on the cutoff criterion. Our results suggest that a cutoff score of 18 may be
too low to be useful as a screening instrument, particularly for MPA.
326
Similar percentages of boys and girls in the 11- to 13-year-old age groups
fell in the unlikely and likely social phobia ranges, unlike the 14- to
19-year-old group, where all of the boys scored in the unlikely social phobia
range, and twice as many 14- to 19-year-old girls obtained scores in the
possible social phobia range than 11- to 13-year-old girls. The essentially
equivalent results in social phobia likelihood across the two 11- to 13-yearold groups is at odds with the result for the MPAIA group comparisons, in
which the American students obtained significantly lower MPAIA scores
than the Australian students. This suggests that the MPAIA may be more
sensitive in capturing specific anxiety experienced in music performance
situations, compared with the SPAIC, which measures anxiety across a
range of social situations.
Gender Differences
Consistent with previous research, girls scored significantly higher on

MPA than did boys. Female musicians have recorded significantly higher
levels of MPA than male professional instrumentalists and tertiary students in
a nonperformance context (Huston, 2001; Sinden, 1999; Steiner, 1998) and
high school band members immediately after a performance (LeBlanc, Jin,
Obert, & Siivola, 1997). Ryan (2000) found a more complex pattern of
anxious responding across Grade 6 boys and girls in a piano recital. Girls had
higher heart rates than boys immediately prior to performing, but this
difference was minimal while performing, although boys had significantly
more anxious behaviors than girls prior to and during performances.
Gender differences in performance anxiety showing females to be more
vulnerable have been observed in other performance domains including
public speaking (Behnke & Sawyer, 2000) and test anxiety (Besharat, 2003;
Gierl & Rogers, 1996; Rozendaal, Minnaert, & Boekaerts, 2001; Spiel,
Wagner, & Fellner, 2002; Wren & Benson, 2004), particularly math anxiety
(Creighton-Lacroix, 2001; Otomo, 1998). Gender differences have not been
observed in all studies. Pribyl, Keaten, and Sakamoto (2001) found no gender
difference in 25 college students who participated in a presentation skills
program, and Sewell and Edmondson (1996) found no gender differences in
precompetitive state anxiety in university soccer and field hockey players.
Of particular relevance to the current research are the test anxiety
findings of Zeidner and Schleyer (1999). Not only did girls in Grades 4 to 9
score significantly higher than boys but both female and male students
enrolled in gifted classes had generally higher test anxiety scores than those
in mixed ability mainstream classes. These findings are consistent with ours,
which show that students of lower and mixed ability in music (the American
327
sample) obtained significantly lower MPA scores than students enrolled in

homogeneous selective schools for gifted young musicians (the Australian
sample).
Adolescent girls also tend to score higher on measures of social anxiety
and social phobia than do boys (Essau et al., 1999; Wittchen, Stein, &
Kessler, 1999). This finding was replicated for the 14-to-19-year age group
in this study.
Of interest, in their initial psychometric study of the SPAIC, the test authors
found no difference between male and female scores and claimed this finding
was consistent with the prevalence of social phobia (Beidel, Turner, & Morris,
1995). There were no differences in SPAIC scores between boys and girls in the
current sample, but no additional epidemiological research was found to support
Beidel et al.s (1995) assertion. However, as a result of further psychometric
investigation of the SPAI-C within the general population, Beidel et al. (2000)
reported that females scored significantly higher than males in social anxiety.
This gender difference in SPAIC results was also supported by Morris and
Masia (1998) for fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-grade children, and most other selfreport anxiety measures administered to children (e.g., the Social Anxiety Scale
for Adolescents; La Greca & Lopez, 1998). The American Psychiatric Association (1995) reported that lifetime presentation rates of social phobia in epidemiological and community studies are between 3% and 13% and that epidemiological and community-based studies (such as this study) find social phobia to
be more prevalent in females than males. Thus, the gender distribution of mean
SPAIC scores in this American sample is generally inconsistent with the gender
distribution of anxiety according to performance and social anxiety research.
The current research also revealed a different pattern in levels of MPA and
social anxiety according to gender and age group. Figures 1 and 2 show that in
boys, MPA can be distinguished from social anxiety, given that MPAIA scores
increase significantly across age and sample group, contrasting with a sharp
decrease in general social anxiety in the 14-to-19 age group. This is theoretically
consistent with the development of formal operational thought, particularly in
areas of interest and involvement, and the demonstrated environmental effect of
higher anxiety scores for students in gifted classes (Zeidner & Schleyer, 1999).
Further, just as Beidel et al. (1995) reported in their initial psychometric analysis
of the SPAIC, there was no difference in scores on this measure according to
age. This provides further evidence for the phenomenological distinction between MPA and social anxiety.
CONCLUSION
This article presents data on a cross-validation study of a recently

developed instrument for assessing MPA in child and adolescent musicians.
328
The analysis of the psychometric properties of the MPAIA with a younger

sample of American junior high school band students shows that this measure
is an internally consistent and reliable tool for measuring MPA. Support for
the instruments validity was determined by (a) comparisons with trait
anxiety and MPAIA, and social anxiety and MPAIA, that demonstrated the
phenomenological distinction between MPA, trait anxiety, and general social
anxiety and (b) the significant and expected gender effect of girls scoring
significantly higher than boys on the MPAIA, a robust finding echoed
throughout the performance anxiety literature.
This study has extended our knowledge of the phenomenology of MPA
in an educational context and provides support for the use of the MPAIA as
a simple, easy-to-use screening tool to assess MPA in music students. The
MPAIA discriminated students on the basis of musical expertise and aspiration. The MPAIA can potentially benefit music educators by providing a
basis for preventive action and by enabling them to monitor overall levels of
MPA as well as specific anxiety symptoms in vulnerable students.
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Assessment of Music Performance Anxiety in Late

The Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents (MPAIA), the

Research into the developmental trajectory and phenomenology of music

Copyright 2005 by the Educational Publishing Foundation

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

Participants were 84 children (43 boys and 41 girls) ranging from 11 to

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

Procedure and Measures

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

Sample students started learning musical instruments at 9 years of age

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

and compared against an Australian sample of three performance high

Cronbachs alpha was used to determine internal consistency. Itemtotal

1113 years, American

1113 years, Australian

1419 years, Australian

Table 2. Descriptive Statistics for All Scales by Group and Gender

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

Australian Samples by Age. Vertical Bars Represent Standard Deviations.

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

Figure 3. Music Performance Anxiety by Desire To Be Professional Musician and Sample

Group. MPAIA Music Performance Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents.

Figure 4. Trait Anxiety by Desire To Be Professional Musician for American Students.

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

Figure 5. Trait Anxiety by Desire To Be a Professional Musician for Australian Students.

Unlikely social phobia

Unlikely social phobia

Unlikely social phobia

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

Pearsons correlation coefficients between the MPAIA, STAIC Trait, and

The aim of this study was to cross-validate a new measure of MPA in

The results demonstrated that the MPAIA is a psychometrically robust

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

better performers and have greater expectations of success. These findings

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

exposure as a means to challenge thoughts by way of hypothesis and reality

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

Consistent with previous research, girls scored significantly higher on

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

sample) obtained significantly lower MPA scores than students enrolled in

This article presents data on a cross-validation study of a recently

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

The analysis of the psychometric properties of the MPAIA with a younger

Special Issue: Validation of the MPAIA

Osborne, Kenny, and Holsomback

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