A Review of Research on Music and Coping in Adolescence

The notion that music can be used by young people to cope with stress is very intuitive and extremely popular. This literature review presents a critical outline of published studies relevant to music and coping in adolescence. First, musical coping is defined in terms of when adolescents use musical activities as cognitive, emotional, and behavioral strategies to manage their stress. More specifically, musical coping is grounded in four assumptions positing that it represents: a conscious regulation strategy against stress, a multidimensional phenomenon, a potential source of either developmental benefits or detriments, and a reflection of diversity. Second. musical coping is examined in the context of music listening. Third, musical coping is discussed in terms of music making across recreational and performance settings. Research issues are underscored and potential solutions are suggested as directions for future research.