"How teachers can help - Performance Anxiety" from American Music Teacher

How teachers can help - Performance Anxiety American Music Teacher - Find Articles

I have received several emails from teachers asking what they can do to help their students with performance anxiety. This excellent article by Anne Petrovich, published in the December 2003 issue of American Music Teacher, suggests strategies teachers can adopt to become more aware of their students' performance anxiety and to help them better cope with this sometimes disabling condition.

Anne Petrovich, LCSW, Ph.D. licensed in both social work and psychology, is a full-time lecturer in the Department of Social Work Education, California State University, Fresno, maintains a private clinical practice and supervises predoctoral interns at the California School of Professional Psychology, Fresno. A violinist in her spare time, Anne's doctoral dissertation was on "Performance Anxiety in Musicians: teacher Behavior and Sources of Self-Efficacy."

For those of you saying, "Whoa! There's another big word! I don't get this jargon," self-efficacy is simply one's belief in one's own capacity to succeed at tasks. In this case, the student's own belief that he/she can actually perform specific music at a specific time.

Petrovich suggests the following:

• Adequate preparation (This may seem obvious, but specific practice techniques for improving focus in stressful situations can be quite helpful)
• Frequent performance opportunities with positive feedback (I call them "piggy bank" experiences)
• Verbal persuasions (positive affirmations--the more specific, the better)
• Reducing physiological and emotional arousal to manageable levels through various coping skills such as relaxation techniques and breathing exercises.
• Vicarious experience and role models (The masterclass environment is valuable for watching others have anxiety and still perform or learn well. Teachers may also share their own experiences with stage fright and their own coping skills.

However, it is important for teachers (I am reminding myself as I type!) to remember that what works for them may not work for the suffering student and to work creatively with each student find approaches that allow for joyful music making.

The article also emphasizes the need for approaches that improve the value of each performing opportunity for each individual student. Treating performance anxiety is not a one-size-fits-all treatment. Using specific references meaningful to each student reinforces self-efficacy. The more specific the approaches, the more helpful they are.

I have been offering up various resources on this subject in recent weeks so that folks can work on this over the summer when they have fewer stresses and demands on their time.

Best,
Catherine