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Are Musical Instrument Gender Associations Changing?

Teachers College, Columbia University, abeles{at}tc.edu

The researcher sought to examine gender associations across three decades to determine if changes in the sex stereotyping of musical instruments has occurred. First, the study examined the paired comparison gender—instrument rankings of 180 college students. The results confirmed a reduction of instrument gender associations reported in the 1990s. The second index of gender associations employed was the instruments that middle school children played (N = 2001). A comparison of the instruments played by boys and girls across three studies conducted in 1978, 1993, and 2007 showed little difference in the sex-by-instrument distribution. Girls played predominately flutes, violins, and clarinets, and most boys played drums, trumpets, and trombones. There was some evidence that in band settings, girls were more likely to play nonconforming gender instruments than were boys. Further studies that focus on parents' influence on children's instrument choices and the effect of ethnicity are recommended.

Key Words: gender associations • instrumental music

Journal of Research in Music Education, Vol. 57, No. 2, 127-139 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/0022429409335878


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