Self-management of stage fright by vocal music performers: which techniques are the most effective?

The prospect of singing on stage in front of an audience is often a source of excessive anxiety and stress, but there are various ways of addressing these emotional states. This study aims to identify factors that influence students' perception of the effectiveness of various techniques for dealing with stage fright. The study involved 112 students who studied academic vocals. The participants had no medical indications for regular use of psychotherapy or medication interventions. The first stage of the study was a preliminary online interview with all study participants in order to determine the current typical level of stage fright and the most common methods of dealing with stage fright used by participants, as well as factors affecting their subjective perception of these methods. The second stage was a controlled experiment, which included the use of four techniques by students of the intervention group: progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing, success visualization, and positive thinking training. At the end of the intervention, the students were re-interviewed to determine changes in stage fright levels. The comparison revealed a significant reduction in the level of stage fright reported by the students (from 75.01 to 60.45, with no significant change in the control group; t = 2.32, p < 0.05). The results of the structured interview allowed the authors to scrutinize the peculiarities of students' perception of the effectiveness of the proposed techniques. Deep breathing exercises and positive self-talk were labelled the most effective in alleviating the symptoms of performance anxiety.