Social distance through music in EFL students

Abstract

Music is constantly around us and, if in English, it fosters social distance in EFL students, consequently increasing the level of affinity with the language, however, can social distance help with other personal aspects? Music lyrics provide different perspectives that can become enriching on an academic level, as music brings cultural aspects of the country of origin and directly affects emotions, therefore song lyrics may become a very powerful instrument when combining social distance and the level of English of students in order to improve academic and future professional performance, among others.The aim of this study was to measure the impact of social distance on the improvement of academic performance, emotional states and future prospects in EFL students. In order to measure those variables, a questionnaire, based on the Likert scale, conducted amongst 82 students from different educational centres. Resulting data analysed with the use of the structural equation modeling (SEM-PLS) revealed the relevance of social distance through music in order to improve learning processes, to feel emotions and to consolidate hopes for future prospects.