A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music Appreciation

This paper integrates concepts from neurobiology, marketing and musicology to propose a causal model of music appreciation and exploratory listening, using directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) and structural equation models (SEMs). The key concepts are music appreciation (measured on a scale from 1 to 10)...

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Main Authors: Henk Jacobs, Marc Leman, Edith Van Dyck
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:Behavioral Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/15/5/676
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author Henk Jacobs
Marc Leman
Edith Van Dyck
author_facet Henk Jacobs
Marc Leman
Edith Van Dyck
author_sort Henk Jacobs
collection DOAJ
description This paper integrates concepts from neurobiology, marketing and musicology to propose a causal model of music appreciation and exploratory listening, using directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) and structural equation models (SEMs). The key concepts are music appreciation (measured on a scale from 1 to 10), evaluations, experiences and the qualities of musical features, which the listeners explore and describe from a first-person perspective. The qualities are understood in terms of a satisfaction or dissatisfaction rating of operational features. The development of the causal model is based on a reiterative methodology involving surveys. Applying the causal model to a large survey of 800 listeners reveals that listeners adopt a slightly different causal pathway for their appreciation of liked versus disliked music. When listeners dislike music, the source of their dissatisfaction is more consistently attributed to the perceived or missed musical qualities rather than to their personal experiences. The iterative methodology and causal modeling offer a foundation for further investigation and refinement in various listening contexts.
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spelling doaj-art-7b464fb944e84e57a0f04479dc90b2d52025-08-20T03:14:29ZengMDPI AGBehavioral Sciences2076-328X2025-05-0115567610.3390/bs15050676A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music AppreciationHenk Jacobs0Marc Leman1Edith Van Dyck2Department of Musicology—IPEM, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, BelgiumDepartment of Musicology—IPEM, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, BelgiumDepartment of Musicology—IPEM, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, BelgiumThis paper integrates concepts from neurobiology, marketing and musicology to propose a causal model of music appreciation and exploratory listening, using directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) and structural equation models (SEMs). The key concepts are music appreciation (measured on a scale from 1 to 10), evaluations, experiences and the qualities of musical features, which the listeners explore and describe from a first-person perspective. The qualities are understood in terms of a satisfaction or dissatisfaction rating of operational features. The development of the causal model is based on a reiterative methodology involving surveys. Applying the causal model to a large survey of 800 listeners reveals that listeners adopt a slightly different causal pathway for their appreciation of liked versus disliked music. When listeners dislike music, the source of their dissatisfaction is more consistently attributed to the perceived or missed musical qualities rather than to their personal experiences. The iterative methodology and causal modeling offer a foundation for further investigation and refinement in various listening contexts.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/15/5/676explorative music listeningmusic appreciationsurveycausal modelDAGSEM
spellingShingle Henk Jacobs
Marc Leman
Edith Van Dyck
A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music Appreciation
Behavioral Sciences
explorative music listening
music appreciation
survey
causal model
DAG
SEM
title A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music Appreciation
title_full A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music Appreciation
title_fullStr A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music Appreciation
title_full_unstemmed A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music Appreciation
title_short A Causal Model for Surveys of Exploratory Listening and Music Appreciation
title_sort causal model for surveys of exploratory listening and music appreciation
topic explorative music listening
music appreciation
survey
causal model
DAG
SEM
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/15/5/676
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