Association of diverse musical experiences and well-being

Abstract

Abstract Background Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well- being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity as per the World Health Organization (WHO). Well-being is a subject aspect in one of the WHO “Health 2020: the European policy for health and well-being,” goals. Listening to music activates the neuronal cells in the frontotemporal lobe of the brain where memory, aggression, and emotions are regulated. Various types of musical exposures may help in dysregulating emotions and stress levels from mental and physical health. Advancing well-being is one of the public health issues to achieve a better quality of life and health and longevity. This study aims to identify an association between well-being and diverse musical experiences to explains public policy developments for advancing well-being. Methods This retrospective longitudinal study includes individuals age 24 and above from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (2008 to 2016). The outcome is subjective health. The predictor is a diverse musical experience (concert, opera, theater). Covariates are gender, age, marital status, objective health, and mental health. Bivariate, univariate, multiple logistic regression analysis was carried out in SAS software version 9.4, p-value (p) <0.05. Results This study shows that well-being is significantly associated (p < 0.0001) with musical experience at the yearly interval (OR: 2.34, 95% CI: 2.06, 2.79) and musical experience at the monthly interval (OR: 3.44, 95% CI: 2.85, 4.15). With adjustment for covariates, well-being is significantly associated (p < 0.0001) with musical experience, yearly interval (OR: 2.22, 95 % CI: 1.89, 2.60), and musical experience at the monthly interval (OR: 2.13, 95 % CI: 2.58, 3.80). Conclusions This study explains that well-being is associated with the diverse nature of musical experiences. Developing policy in the area of various types of musical programs in the community would achieve advancing well-being. Key messages Increase awareness of the importance of well-being and the impact of different musical experiences on wellbeing. Prioritize in developing public policy for well-bing with an option of various music programs in the community and conduct more research in the field of well-being with musical experiences.