Understanding Links between Race/Ethnicity and Health: Does Participation in the Musical Arts Matter?

Abstract

The present study investigated different types of participation in the musical arts and linked them to self-rated mental and physical health. Of central interest was whether such participation mediated or moderated links between race/ethnicity and health. The work was conducted with a subsample (N = 2,157) of the Midlife in the U.S. (MIDUS) Refresher study who completed a self-administered questionnaire about the arts in 2021-22 (63.5% response rate). Assessments included various forms of active music engagement as well as receptive music appreciation. Overall, Black participants were more engaged in varieties of music and performance (singing, dancing, creating) than White participants. Black participants also consumed (appreciated) more jazz, salsa, theatre, dance than White participants. Hispanic participants showed generally similar patterns of music appreciation as Black participants. Mediation analyses showed that the higher active music engagement of Black compared to White individuals was linked with better mental and physical health. Higher receptive music appreciation was not a mediator of race differences in mental and physical health and there was no support for moderation effects. Overall, the findings draw attention to race/ethnicity in considering how participation in the musical arts matter for health and underscore the need for more diverse measures of arts participation, along with quality assessments of mental and physical health tracked longitudinally.