Dataset Information

Losing Life's Sparkle: Experiences of Canadian Choral Musicians During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

ABSTRACT: Background. Singing in choirs, which previous research has identified as supporting wellbeing, has been restricted and altered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to investigate and describe the experience of music-making for musicians in professional and semi-professional choirs in Canada 18-22 months into the COVID-19 pandemic. Method. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 participants and analyzed using interpretive description. Findings. Four themes: (1) increased negative feelings associated with the music-making experience due to COVID-19 restrictions, (2) isolation and disconnection, (3) recognizing how music-making aids in their own mental health, the participants used music-making to help their communities cope with the pandemic, and (4) adapting in response to COVID-19 reinforced music-making's importance. Implications. Understanding how the COVID-19 pandemic has altered Canadian choral musicians' experience of music-making can help occupational therapists in supporting choral musicians return to this meaningful occupation.

SUBMITTER: Lozano MJA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9902788 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Losing Life's Sparkle: Experiences of Canadian Choral Musicians During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Lozano Mary Jo A MJA Churcher Stephanie L SL Kirchner Madison J MJ Slade Teri M TM

Canadian journal of occupational therapy. Revue canadienne d'ergotherapie 20230122 2

Background. Singing in choirs, which previous research has identified as supporting wellbeing, has been restricted and altered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to investigate and describe the experience of music-making for musicians in professional and semi-professional choirs in Canada 18-22 months into the COVID-19 pandemic. Method. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 participants and analyzed using interpretive description. ...[more]

PMID: 36683408

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Project description:BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has led to stigmatization of individuals based on race/ethnicity, age, gender, and occupation, among other factors. We canvassed Canadian residents to explore perceptions of and experiences with stigma during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsWe conducted an online survey between June 10 and December 31 2020. The survey was rooted in the Health Stigma and Discrimination Framework and included multiple choice, Likert and open-ended questions related to perceived and experienced stigma. Residents of Ontario, Canada were eligible to participate and we aimed to recruit a sample that was diverse by race/ethnicity and age.ResultsA total of 1,823 individuals participated in the survey (54% women, 39% men; 54% 18-40 years old, 28% 41-60 years old, 12% 61+ years old; 33% White, 26% East/SouthEast Asian, 14% Black, 12% South Asian). Fifty-one percent of participants agreed/strongly agreed that racist views had increased toward certain racial/ethnic groups in Canada during the pandemic. Participants perceived that people in Canada were stigmatized during the pandemic because of race/ethnicity (37%), political beliefs (26%), older age (24%), being a healthcare worker (23%), younger age (22%), being an essential worker (21%), and gender (11%). Thirty-nine percent of respondents feared experiencing and 37% experienced stigmatization during the pandemic. Men, individuals aged 18-40, and racialized participants were more likely to fear or experience stigma. With respect to health behaviors, 74, 68, and 59% of respondents were comfortable masking in public, seeking medical care if they became ill, and getting tested for COVID-19, respectively. Men were less likely to indicate comfort with mask wearing or seeking medical care. Participants aged 18-40 and Black participants were less likely to indicate comfort with all three behaviors compared to those over age 41 and White participants, respectively. South Asian participants were less likely to be comfortable seeking medical care compared to White Participants.DiscussionParticipants feared or experienced stigmatization towards various demographic characteristics during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is critical that the factors driving stigma during health emergencies in Canada be better understood in order to develop effective public health messaging and interventions.

Project description:BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the spread of misinformation worldwide. The purpose of this study was to explore perceptions of misinformation and preferred sources of obtaining COVID-19 information from those living in Canada. In particular, we sought to explore the perceptions of East Asian individuals in Canada, who experienced stigma related to COVID-19 messaging.MethodsWe conducted a qualitative thematic analysis study. Interviews were offered in English, Mandarin and Cantonese. Interviewers probed for domains related to knowledge about COVID-19, preferred sources of information, perceived barriers and facilitators of misinformation, and preferences for communication during a health emergency. Interviews were recorded, translated, transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a framework approach. Transcripts were independently double-coded until > 60% agreement was reached. This study received research ethics approval.ResultsFifty-five interviews were conducted. The majority of participants were women (67%); median age was 52 years. 55% of participants were of East-Asian descent. Participants obtained information about COVID-19 from diverse English and non-English sources including news media, government agencies or representatives, social media, and personal networks. Challenges to seeking and understanding information included: encountering misinformation, making sense of evolving or conflicting public health guidance, and limited information on topics of interest. 65% of participants reported encountering COVID-19 misinformation. East Asian participants called on government officials to champion messaging to reduce stigmatizing and racist rhetoric and highlighted the importance of having accessible, non-English language information sources. Participants provided recommendations for future public health communications guidance during health emergencies, including preferences for message content, information messengers, dissemination platforms and format of messages. Almost all participants preferred receiving information from the Canadian government and found it helpful to utilize various mediums and platforms such as social media and news media for future risk communication, urging for consistency across all platforms.ConclusionsWe provide insights on Canadian experiences navigating COVID-19 information, where more than half perceived encountering misinformation on platforms when seeking COVID-19 information . We provide recommendations to inform public health communications during future health emergencies.

Project description:Amateur choral singing is a common pastime and worthy of study, possibly conferring benefits to health and social behaviour. Participants might be expected to possess musical ability and share some behavioural characteristics. Polymorphisms in genes concerned with serotonergic neurotransmission are associated with both behaviour and musical aptitude. Those investigated previously include the variable number tandem repeats RS1, RS3 and AVR in the AVPR1A (arginine vasopressin receptor 1a) gene and STin2 in the SLC6A4 (solute carrier family 6 [neurotransmitter transporter, serotonin], member 4) gene, as well as the SLC6A4 promoter region polymorphism, 5-HTTLPR. We conducted a genetic association study on 523 participants to establish whether alleles at these polymorphisms occur more commonly in choral singers than in those not regularly participating in organised musical activity (non-musicians). We also analysed tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for AVPR1A and SLC6A4 to determine whether other variants in these genes were associated with singer/non-musician status. At the STin2 polymorphism, overall association with singer/non-musician status was evident at P = 0.006. The 9-repeat (P = 0.04) and 12-repeat (P = 0.04) alleles were more common in singers and the 10-repeat allele less so (P = 0.009). Odds ratios were 0.73 (95% CI 0.57-0.94) for the 10-repeat allele and 2.47 (95% CI 0.88-6.94) for the rarer 9-repeat allele. No overall association was detected at P<0.05 between any other polymorphism and singer/non-musician status. Our null findings with respect to RS3, RS1 and AVR, polymorphisms associated with musical ability by other authors, suggest that choir membership may depend partly on factors other than musical ability. In a related musical project involving one participating choir, a new 40-part unaccompanied choral work, "Allele", was composed and broadcast on national radio. In the piece, each singer's part incorporated their personal RS3 genotype.

Dataset Information

Losing Life's Sparkle: Experiences of Canadian Choral Musicians During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Publications

Losing Life's Sparkle: Experiences of Canadian Choral Musicians During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

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