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https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672241288027
Personality and Social
Psychology Bulletin
1 –13
© 2024 by the Society for Personality
and Social Psychology, Inc
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DOI: 10.1177/01461672241288027
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Empirical Research Paper
“Everything else just falls away . . . and you have just dancing.
You are lost, it is sweaty, everything is beating, you look around
and everyone is feeling it, smiling. . .the bewilderment, the love,
and the music! Music as loud as the air is heavy with heat. That
is why I live. . .” — Brazilian samba/bossa nova singer, Astrud
Gilberta
The experience of listening to live music with others has
been found across time and cultures (Sixsmith & Gibson,
2007). Previous research suggests that music may be particu-
larly well suited to facilitating an all-important sense of
social belonging and psychological wellbeing (Baumeister &
Leary, 1995; Maury & Rickard, 2016). Although listening to
live music with others does not directly lead to the formation
of social relationships, it may foster a sense of connection to
the other people present and a sensation that something spe-
cial is being shared. The combination of those experiences is
sometimes called collective effervescence (CE; Gabriel et al.,
2017), a term borrowed from Durkheim who used it to
explain the psychological experience of group religious ritu-
als (Durkheim, 1965). We propose that live music events
offer a unique experience of CE and that CE may predict
positive psychological consequences of attending live music
events.
In the current research, we explored the power of attend-
ing live music performances to increase wellbeing, and the
unique role of CE in that process. We also examined other
related constructs—such as flow, awe, and emotional syn-
chrony. Furthermore, we examined whether common fea-
tures of live music events—such as parasocial bonds with
artists, lyrical immersion, and being in the company of
friends—would predict wellbeing via increased CE.
Although we do not suggest that these features are exclusive
to live music events, we argue that live music events are
related to wellbeing in part because of these features. In sum-
mary, we examined whether live music events predict well-
being, whether CE plays a role in that (above and beyond the
effects of related constructs), and which factors of live music
experiences increase wellbeing via increased CE.
1288027PSPXXX10.1177/01461672241288027Personality and Social Psychology BulletinKoefler et al.
research-article2024
1University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA
2Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
*These two authors contributed equally to this work and have agreed to
be co-first authors
Corresponding Author:
Nicole Koefler, Psychology, University at Buffalo, 204 Park Hall, North
Campus, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA.
Email: nekoefle@buffalo.edu
Let the Music Play: Live Music Fosters
Collective Effervescence and Leads
to Lasting Positive Outcomes
Nicole Koefler*1 , Esha Naidu*2, Shira Gabriel1,
Veronica Schneider1, Gabriela S. Pascuzzi1,
and Elaine Paravati1
Abstract
This work examined the power of live music events to enhance wellbeing through collective effervescence (CE)—the
sense of sacredness and connection felt when in large groups. Four studies (N = 789) using both university and community
samples examined the relationship between live music events and CE and how this relationship contributes to positive,
lasting outcomes. Results suggest that CE is highly related to positive outcomes associated with attending live music events.
CE uniquely predicted meaning in life and enjoyment during the event above and beyond related constructs. Feeling CE was
also related to greater meaning in life during the event and continued happiness a week after live music events. Further, CE
mediated effects between various elements of live music events (e.g., parasocial bonds with the artist) and positive lasting
outcomes. In summary, CE plays a key role in the lasting wellbeing that follows live music events.
Keywords
live music, collective effervescence, happiness, meaning in life, belonging
Received January 25, 2024; revision accepted September 11, 2024
2 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 00(0)
Music and Wellbeing
People have been making music together since the earliest
human civilizations (Sixsmith & Gibson, 2007). Indeed,
music evolved as a form of social communication to enhance
social living. Groups used music to pass information to
members about shared mental states (Loersch & Arbuckle,
2013), to regulate emotions, and to develop social bonds
(Maury & Rickard, 2016). Today, music continues to offer
these adaptive benefits toward human flourishing and well-
being. Research suggests that listening to music reduces
stress, anxiety, and depression (Daykin et al., 2018), pro-
vides a source of meaning and helps regulate and improve
affect (Groarke & Hogan, 2016), and serves as a means of
connecting with others (Maury & Rickard, 2016).
Although listening to music alone or through prerecorded
media can offer benefits (Gabriel & Paravati, 2021; Paravati
et al., revise and resubmit), live music performances may be
particularly well suited to enhancing wellbeing. When peo-
ple attend live music events they connect in a community of
like-minded others, forming a unique relationship between
fans and the artist (Black & Kochanowski, 2007). Indeed,
this atmosphere motivates people to attend live concerts
(Brown & Knox, 2017), with these spaces often inviting the
most intense experiences people report ever having (Lamont,
2011). And although attending live performances has been
found to lower biological stress (Fancourt & Williamon,
2016), the exact mechanisms by which attending live music
events affect wellbeing are unclear. In the current work, we
propose that CE plays an important role in explaining the
benefits of live music.
Collective Effervescence and Music
Engaging with large collectives plays an essential role in
psychological wellbeing through the sense of collective
effervescence (CE) fostered by collective events (Gabriel et
al., 2017). CE is experienced when a collective event gives
(a) a sense of connection to the other people present and (b)
a perception that something special or sacred is occurring
(Gabriel et al., 2020). Over the past decade, researchers have
found empirical evidence of CE in events such as large-scale
cultural gatherings (Páez et al., 2015), giant dance parties
(e.g., Berkers & Michael, 2017), and fire-walking activities
(Xygalatas et al., 2011). In addition, CE has been found to
play a key role in a number of psychological processes. The
proclivity for CE predicts a sense of social connection,
decreased loneliness, increased wellbeing, and the feeling
that life has meaning, even when controlling for other means
of social connection and personality factors (Gabriel et al.,
2017). CE mediates the positive effects of group participa-
tion on positive affect, happiness, positive social beliefs,
identity fusion, and enhanced collective and personal self-
esteem (Páez et al., 2015). Finally, events that increase CE
also increase a sense of connection, feeling good about
oneself, and feeling good about one’s life (Gabriel et al.,
2017). The more of these events that one experiences in life,
the happier one is, across a wide variety of measures (Gabriel
et al., 2020). Therefore, based on the link between CE and
collective events and the link between CE and positive out-
comes, we predict that live music events will be associated
with CE and the positive outcomes that follow.
The benefits of live music may also be linked to other
experiences aside from CE. For example, flow, awe, and per-
ceived emotional synchrony are also predictive of positive
experiences during group events (Gabriel et al., 2020;
Wlodarczyk et al., 2020; Zumeta et al., 2016). When describ-
ing experiences with live music, people often report experi-
encing ritualistic, flow-like states (Lamont, 2011), and past
work finds that collective gatherings elicit a sense of shared
flow, promoting personal wellbeing, positive emotions, and
greater social cohesion (Zumeta et al., 2016). Music also
commonly elicits awe (Monroy & Keltner, 2023; Silvia et
al., 2015) and features of live music events have been found
to produce awe (Monroy & Keltner, 2023). Additionally,
when in collective group settings, such as live music events,
people often experience emotional synchrony wherein indi-
viduals share in unified emotional responses and feel an
overlap with the collective self (Krueger, 2014; Wlodarczyk
et al. 2020; Wood & Kinnunen, 2020). Music unites people
in their emotional expression (Loersch & Arbuckle, 2013),
and live music events in particular foster a sense of emo-
tional synchrony through features like physically synchro-
nous movements (e.g., swaying; Lakens, 2010). Previous
research directly compared CE to these constructs and found
that CE is related but distinct from them (Gabriel et al., 2017;
2020). Thus, although these elements may be related to well-
being during live music events, we propose that increased
feelings of CE during live music events may explain the
positive benefits of live music events above and beyond
these related constructs and play a key role in understanding
the relationship between live music and wellbeing.
In addition, we predict that specific elements of live music
experiences may be related to the experience of CE and the
resulting positive outcomes. For example, live music may
promote wellbeing through facilitating parasocial relation-
ships—one-sided bonds with individuals, such as performers
(Giles, 2002; Isotalus, 1995; Perse & Rubin, 1989; Rubin &
McHugh, 1987). Bonds with performers may increase CE by
making people feel a sense of connection and that something
special is happening, and this feeling of CE should lead to
wellbeing. People may also feel immersed in the lyrics of the
live music performance and feel a sense of being transported
into another setting, temporarily distanced from the present
world (Green & Brock, 2000). Immersion in the world of
music with a crowd of other people may lead to a sense of
something special happening and connection to the other
people sharing that experience—in other words, CE. Finally,
being at live music events with friends may contribute to CE
and, thus, wellbeing. Being with others may increase one’s
Koefler et al. 3
sense of connection and the feeling that the event is special
(Gabriel et al., 2020). Thus, we predict that parasocial bonds
with the musical artists, lyrical immersion, and attending live
music events with friends are likely to predict wellbeing via
their effect on CE.
Overview of Research
Across four studies, we tested the hypothesis that collective
effervescence (CE) explains many of the positive short and
long-term effects of attending live music events. In Study 1,
we tested the hypothesis that CE events are more likely than
non-CE events to include music. In Study 2, we examined
whether CE plays a role in making live music events enjoy-
able, above and beyond the effects of other related constructs.
We predicted that CE would be the strongest predictor of
why live music events were enjoyable and increased mean-
ing in life for participants. Finally, in Studies 3a and 3b, we
tested how elements of live music events directly and indi-
rectly relate to positive outcomes through CE. We predicted
that CE would be directly related to meaning in life and con-
tinued happiness one week following the event and would
mediate the effects of elements of the concert experience
(i.e., parasocial bonds with the musical artists, lyrical immer-
sion, and attending live music events with friends) on
wellbeing.1
Wellbeing can be conceptualized in a variety of ways. In
the current work, we examined outcomes related to psycho-
logical wellbeing such as state meaning in life (MIL), state
happiness, and enjoyment of the event. Previous work has
found that higher levels of trait MIL are related to higher
levels of psychological wellbeing and a lower likelihood of
experiencing psychological difficulties (Routledge et al.,
2011; Steger et al., 2006). Moreover, state MIL, which repre-
sents short-term variations in a person’s experience of mean-
ing in life, has been found to be related to positive affect
(King et al., 2006) and self-concept clarity (Schlegel &
Hicks, 2011). From a sociogenomic perspective (Roberts &
Jackson, 2008), state levels of MIL are likely to relate to
global levels of MIL for an individual. Furthermore, state
happiness has been found to be one of the strongest predic-
tors of subjective wellbeing (Diener & Seligman, 2002), and
positive feelings such as enjoying events in life, is one of the
hallmarks of a happy and thriving individual (Diener et al.,
1999). By using different measures of wellbeing—state
meaning in life, enjoyment, and happiness—we were able to
assess wellbeing as a complex and multifaceted construct.
All data, syntax, and preregistered hypotheses can be
found at the following link: https://osf.io/jf36t/?view_only=
dff517ae59d740eead0a29ef9e85bce6.
Study 1
First, to establish the link between CE and music, we con-
ducted a study to explore whether CE events were more
likely than non-CE events to include music. Participants
described group events in which they experienced (or did not
experience) CE, and then answered questions about the
event.
Method
Participants. We collected data over the course of an aca-
demic semester, which resulted in a total sample size of N =
182. We conducted a sensitivity analysis in G*Power (Faul
et al., 2007) for our primary outcome comparing the means
of the control and CE-prime groups with a paired samples
t-test, assuming a two-tailed test and an alpha of .05. A sam-
ple of this size provides 80% power to detect a small effect
(d = .21). Therefore, we were well powered for this study. In
all, 182 participants (101 female) from a large public state
university took part in this study. Participants were compen-
sated with partial fulfillment of a course requirement in a
psychology course. Participants who indicated their willing-
ness to participate in the study completed a survey and all
questionnaires on the external website Qualtrics. The sample
was ethnically diverse (14 Black/African/African American,
47 Asian/Asian American, 16 Hispanic/Hispanic American,
1 Native American/Alaska Native, 87 Caucasian/White, and
14 Other) with an average age of 19.00 years old (SD =
2.26). This sample is representative of the population of
interest.
Procedure. Participants were presented with two prompts in a
random order. A CE Prime Prompt briefly described CE and
asked participants to write about a time they were at a group
event and experienced CE. A Control Event Prompt did not
describe CE and asked participants to describe a time the
participant was at a group event but did not feel any sacred-
ness or anything special about the event. Participants were
able to write about events that happened at any point in their
lives. After each prompt, participants responded to a series of
questionnaires regarding the music at the event and a state
CE measure. After the prompts and associated question-
naires, participants were asked about their demographic
information and were debriefed and thanked for their
participation.
Materials
CE Prime and Control Event Prompts. Participants
responded to both the CE Prime and Control Event prompts
in a random order. The full text for each prompt is available
in the Supplemental Materials.
State Collective Effervescence. Eight items were used to
assess participants’ state CE during the CE and non-CE
events that they recalled during the writing task. Examples
of the items included, “I feel connected to others who were at
the event” and “I feel as if there was something special about
the event” (Gabriel et al., 2020). Participants responded to
4 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 00(0)
these items using a response scale of 1 (Strongly disagree) to
7 (Strongly agree). These items were reliable in both the CE-
prime condition (α = .91) and the non-CE prime condition
(α = .87). Full scale items are available in the Supplemental
Materials.
Music Involved in the Event. Ten items were used to assess the
degree to which music was involved in the event described in
the prompts. Example items include “The event was focused
on music” and “There was music in the background during
the event.” Participants responded to these items using a scale
from 1 (Strongly disagree) to 7 (Strongly agree). These items
were reliable in both the CE-prime condition (α = .83) and
the non-CE prime condition (α = .73). Full items for this
scale are available in the Supplemental Materials.
Results2
Manipulation Check. First, to check that the priming manipu-
lation was effective, we conducted a paired samples t-test to
examine whether the events that participants recalled in the
CE prime condition involved more CE than the events that
participants recalled in the non-CE prime condition. Partici-
pants in the CE prime condition did indeed feel more CE (M
= 5.45, SD = 1.17) compared with those in the non-CE
prime condition (M = 2.79, SD = 1.25), t(166) = 20.17, p <
.001, d = 1.71, 95% CI [1.39, 1.91].
Music and CE. Next, we used a paired samples t-test to exam-
ine whether events recalled in the CE-prime condition
involved music more than events recalled in the non-CE
prime condition. Indeed, participants in the CE prime condi-
tion were more likely to report that there was some form of
music during the event (M = 4.95, SD = 1.21) than those in
the non-CE prime condition (M = 3.29, SD = 1.09), t(167)
= 12.48, p < .001, d = 1.72, 95% CI [0.78, 1.15].
Additionally, we examined correlations to determine if
the amount of CE experienced at an event was related to how
strongly the event was focused on music. Because the amount
of music experienced at the event was measured ordinally
rather than linearly, and was not normally distributed, we
examined the Spearman’s rho correlation coefficients. The
amount of CE was correlated with the amount of music for
the event recalled in the CE prime condition (r(167) = .17, p
= .028) but not in the non-CE prime condition (r(167) = .04,
p = .592).
Study 1 Discussion
The results of Study 1 suggest the importance of music in CE
events. These initial findings suggest that music is more
likely to occur during CE-events compared with non-CE
events. Additionally, the presence of music is related to the
amount of CE experienced during an event. Music seems to
play a special role in fostering CE. In other words, it may be
important to have music present during collective events as
music and CE appear to be intricately bound.
Study 2
Study 1 established that CE events are more likely to involve
music than non-CE events, and that the amount of CE expe-
rienced is related to the amount of music at the event. Study
2 sought to explore if CE was related to positive outcomes at
live music events over and above other constructs that are
also related to positive experiences during group events. If
CE is found to predict positive outcomes during live music
events when controlling for other related constructs, this
would suggest that CE has unique predictive abilities and is
distinct in this from other similar constructs such as awe,
emotional synchrony, and flow. To test this, we had partici-
pants recall an instance when they saw live music and
describe their experience, including their feelings of CE and
other constructs. Then, we performed a series of regression
analyses with feelings of CE and other related constructs pre-
dicting positive outcomes.
Method
Participants. We collected data throughout an academic
semester, which resulted in a total sample size of N = 183.
We conducted a sensitivity analysis in G*Power (Faul et al.,
2007) for our primary outcome of linear multiple regressions
with four predictors, assuming a two-tailed test and an alpha
of .05. A sample of this size provides 80% power to detect an
effect size of F2 = 0.067.
We recruited 183 participants (55 female) from a large
public state university diverse in ethnicity (17 Black/African/
African American, 47 Asian/Asian American, 20 Hispanic/
Hispanic American, 1 Native American/Alaska Native, 100
Caucasian/White, and 12 Other) with an average age of
19.19 (SD = 1.59). Students were recruited to participate as
partial fulfillment of a course requirement in a psychology
course. After indicating their willingness to participate, par-
ticipants completed the survey on the external website
Qualtrics. Participant demographics were representative of
the intended population.
Procedure. Participants began the study by responding to a
prompt about their experiences with live music. This prompt
read, “Please think of a time when you saw live music. Tell
us about it. Who was performing? Did you enjoy it? How
many people were there? What was it like? How long did it
last? Tell us as much as you can remember about the event.”
Participants were able to write about live music events that
happened at any point in their lives. After responding to this
prompt, participants responded to a series of questionnaires
about the event. These questionnaires were presented in a
random order and included CE and other constructs. After
the prompt and associated questionnaires, participants were
Koefler et al. 5
asked about their demographic information and were
debriefed and thanked for their participation. Additional
items were also assessed for exploratory purposes; however,
as these items did not correlate strongly with relevant con-
structs and were not related to the hypotheses addressed in
this study, they are not reported here. Full items for all scales
are included in Supplemental Materials.
Materials
Predictors
State CE. State CE (Gabriel et al., 2020) for Study 2
was measured using the same eight-item scale as in Study
1 (α = .92).
Awe. Awe during the musical experience was measured
with the 30-item Awe Experience Scale (AWE-S) from 1
(Strongly disagree) to 7 (Strongly agree; Yaden et al., 2019).
Items comprised six facets of awe: time, self-loss, connect-
edness, vastness, physiological, and accommodation. Par-
ticipants were asked to think about the musical event they
described in the prompt, and to respond to items such as “I
noticed time slowing,” and “I felt that I was in the presence
of something grand” (α = .94).
Emotional synchrony. Emotional synchrony during the
musical event was measured using a modified version of the
Perceived Emotional Synchrony Scale (Páez et al., 2015).
Participants responded to six items (e.g., “We felt a strong
shared emotion”; “We felt that we were one”) on a scale from
1 (Not at all) to 7 (All of the time; α = .94).
Flow. Flow during the event was measured with eight
items on a scale from 1 (Strongly agree) to 7 (Strongly dis-
agree), modified from Rheinberg et al. (2003). Participants
responded to items such as “During the concert, I was com-
pletely lost in the moment” and “During the concert, I did not
notice time passing” (α = .90).
Outcome Measures
Enjoyment of the Event. Participants’ enjoyment of the
musical event was captured with three items. One item asked
participants, “How good was this concert relative to other
concerts you have been to?” on a scale from 1 (The worst) to
7 (The best). A second item asked participants, “During your
musical experience did you feel positive?” on a scale from
1 (Strongly disagree) to 7 (Strongly agree). The third item
asked, “During your musical experience did you feel nega-
tive?” on a scale from 1 (Strongly disagree) to 7 (Strongly
agree). This item was reverse scored when creating the final
composite enjoyment scale (α = .76).
Meaning in life (MIL). Meaning in life experienced during
the musical event was measured using a modified version of
the Presence subscale from the Meaning in Life Question-
naire (Steger et al., 2006). To capture the effect of the live
music event on participants’ perceived meaning in life, we
modified existing items from Steger et al. (2006) to reflect
a state rather than trait scale. Participants responded to five
items (e.g., “During the event, I felt like my life had a clear
sense of purpose”) on a scale from 1 (Absolutely untrue) to 7
(Absolutely true; α = .93). However, the fifth item (“During
the event, I felt like my life had no clear purpose”), which
was reverse scored, was excluded from analysis as it did not
show good reliability with the other items.
Results
Observed means, standard deviations, and correlations
among all variables can be found in Table 1. Due to high cor-
relations between predictor variables, we conducted a test to
see if the data met the assumption of collinearity. The
Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) values were all less than 5.
Therefore, multicollinearity was not a concern (Kim, 2019).
To examine the factors that were related to enjoyment of
the concert, we ran one regression analysis (see Table 2),
which included CE, awe, emotional synchrony, and flow
during the live music event simultaneously predicting enjoy-
ment. By entering all predictors simultaneously, each pre-
dictor’s coefficient is interpreted in the context of all other
predictors. This analysis revealed that CE predicted greater
enjoyment of the concert even when other related variables
were included in the model. Flow also was a significant pre-
dictor of enjoyment. Contrary to expectations, awe during
the event predicted less enjoyment. Emotional synchrony
during the event did not predict enjoyment of the concert.
Table 1. Correlations Among All Measures in Study 2.
M SD Measure 1 2 3 4 5 6
4.74 1.19 1. State Collective Effervescence —
4.23 0.99 2. Awe .77*** —
3.92 1.55 3. Emotional Synchrony .68*** .56*** —
5.07 1.27 4. Flow .51*** .33*** .38*** —
5.68 1.08 5. Enjoyment of the concert .61*** .35*** .41*** .54*** —
4.23 1.43 6. Meaning in Life .57*** .48*** .51*** .29*** .26*** —
Note. ***p < .001.
6 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 00(0)
A second regression analysis included the same predictors
of CE, awe, emotional synchrony, and flow simultaneously
predicting MIL (see Table 2). This analysis revealed that CE
remained a unique predictor of MIL even when accounting
for other related variables. Emotional synchrony also pre-
dicted greater MIL when controlling for the other variables.
Participants’ feelings of awe and flow did not uniquely pre-
dict MIL.
Study 2 Discussion
The present study examined whether CE explained the posi-
tive outcomes people experienced during a live music event
over and above other related constructs. By entering all of
the potential predictor variables simultaneously, each regres-
sion coefficient may be interpreted as the unique predictive
power when accounting for the predictive power of the other
entered variables. As predicted, CE predicted both enjoy-
ment of the event and increased MIL even when controlling
for the predictive power of other predictors: flow, awe, and
emotional synchrony. Although flow also predicted greater
enjoyment of the concert, and emotional synchrony pre-
dicted greater MIL, CE during the event remained the stron-
gest predictor of the outcome variables and the only one that
significantly predicted both outcomes. Thus, CE plays an
important role in making live music events feel meaningful
and enjoyable.
Contrary to expectations, awe during the live music event
predicted less enjoyment of the event. Though past work
suggests that awe increases wellbeing, it may be that when
all other positive feelings are removed, the feelings of small-
ness and need for accommodation (i.e., the need to change
your existing thinking to make sense of the experience) may
not have been enjoyable to participants (Keltner & Haidt,
2003). This may suggest that when people are at live music
events, it may benefit them to focus less on how they are a
small part of a larger whole. Rather, people should focus
more on their close connection to others around them and
how this feeling is special. Further research would be neces-
sary to examine that hypothesis.
In summary, Study 2 provided evidence that CE plays a
unique and important role in predicting positive outcomes of
live music experiences. Studies 3a and 3b attempted to repli-
cate the positive effects of CE and to expand what is known
by examining which elements within a live music experience
may lead to CE. We examined whether lyrical immersion,
attending the concert with friends, and parasocial bond with
musicians would all lead to CE which would then lead to
increased wellbeing. Study 3 used one of the same wellbeing
outcomes as Study 2 (meaning in life) and a new wellbeing
outcome: sustained happiness after the concert.
Study 3a and 3b
In Study 3a and 3b, we explored how elements of live music
events and CE were related to positive outcomes one week
after experiencing the live music event. First, we expected
that CE would be directly related both to positive experi-
ences during the event (MIL), and to positive feelings (hap-
piness) one week after the event. We also expected that
variables related to attendees’ personal positive experience
of the live music event would be related to increased CE, and
subsequently to positive outcomes both during the event, and
one week after the event. We followed the same procedure
across studies but conducted them with different popula-
tions. Using university and music community contacts, we
gained access to concert and music festival goers to test our
hypotheses in a natural setting. In doing so, we were able to
examine the relationship between variables related to one’s
personal experience during the event, CE, and positive psy-
chological benefits.
Method
Participants. In Study 3a, we recruited 134 participants (78
female) from a large public state university diverse in ethnic-
ity (5 Black/African/African American, 39 Asian/Asian
American, 11 Hispanic/Hispanic American, 2 Native Ameri-
can/Alaska Native, 81 Caucasian/White, and 8 Other) with
an average age of 19.58 (SD = 3.79). Students were compen-
sated for their participation with partial fulfillment of a
course requirement in a psychology course.
In Study 3b, we recruited 290 participants (229 female; 1
Gender-Queer/Gender Non-conforming) from a community
sample (5 Asian/Asian American, 8 Hispanic/Hispanic
American, 236 Caucasian/White, and 8 Other) with an aver-
age age of 43.60 (SD = 10.12). Participants were compen-
sated for their participation by being entered into a raffle to
be randomly chosen to win two free tickets to an upcoming
live music event.
Participants were eligible to participate only if they had
attended a live music event in the past week. Recruitment of
Table 2. Standardized regression coefficients for models of CE
and other related constructs in predicting wellbeing during live
music events.
Dependent variable βt p
Outcome measure: Enjoyment of concert
CE .68 6.46 .001***
Awe −.26 −3.00 .003**
Emotional Synchrony −.01 −.188 .851
Flow .29 4.54 .001***
Outcome measure: Meaning in Life
CE .34 2.94 .004**
Awe .09 .882 .379
Emotional Synchrony .23 2.72 .007**
Flow .01 .075 .941
Note. ** p < .01; ***p < .001.
Koefler et al. 7
our community sample was conducted at local live music
festivals and from Facebook groups run by fans of different
bands. After indicating their willingness to participate in the
study and confirming their attendance at a music event in the
past week, participants completed the survey on the external
website Qualtrics.
Wolf and colleagues (2013) have suggested that a sample
size between 180 and 440 is reasonable to assess regressive
paths within a structural equation model with missing data.
Therefore, this sample size was adequate to address the cur-
rent research questions.
Procedure. Data were collected from participants one week
following their attendance at a live music event. Participants
first described and answered questions about the music event
that they attended such as who was performing and the genre
of music that was played. This was done to remind partici-
pants of the experience so that they could more accurately
respond to subsequent questions about the event. Then par-
ticipants answered a series of questionnaires about their
experiences at the event and level of CE at the event. These
questionnaires were presented in a random order to account
for ordering effects. Then, participants responded to ques-
tions assessing their feelings of MIL during the event, and
their feelings of happiness now, one week after the live music
event. After completing the questionnaires, participants
completed demographic questions, were thanked, and were
debriefed. The same procedure was used across both sam-
ples. Additional items were also assessed for exploratory
purposes; however, as these items did not correlate strongly
with relevant constructs and were not relevant to the hypoth-
eses addressed in this study, they are not reported here. Full
scale items are reported in the Supplemental Materials.
Materials
Parasocial bond with artist. Six items measured partici-
pants’ parasocial relationships with the musical performers
of the event they attended on a scale from 1 (Strongly Dis-
agree) to 7 (Strongly Agree) (adapted from the PSI processes
scale; Schramm & Hartmann, 2008). Items included “Even
though I don’t know them in person, I feel a real bond to this
artist/group, almost like I do for real friends” (3a: α = .85;
3b: α = .83). Due to the specific experience of having a para-
social relationship with a musical artist/group, we adapted
items from the PSI processes scale to capture the intended
construct.
Lyrical Immersion. How connected participants felt to the
musician’s lyrics during the event was measured with three
items on a scale from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 7 (Strongly
Agree) (adapted from the Transportation Scale; Green
& Brock, 2000). Due to the highly specific experience of
immersing oneself in the lyrics at a live music event, we mod-
ified existing items from Green and Brock (2000) to capture
the intended construct. Items included “I felt immersed in the
world of the music,” “The music took me out of my everyday
life and into a different place: the world that is spun out of the
music and/or lyrics,” and “I was absorbed in the message or
feelings behind the music” (3a: α = .91; 3b: α = .88).
Being With Friends at the Event. One item asked partici-
pants, “Were you with friends at this concert?” on a scale
from 1 (I went by myself) to 5 (I was friends with everyone or
almost everyone there).
Continued Happiness After Event. Feelings of happiness
after the event ended were measured with three items. The
first item was “How often do you find yourself thinking
about the concert” and was measured on a scale from 1 (I
haven’t thought about it at all since it ended) to 7 (I have
been thinking about it almost constantly). The second item
asked, “How does thinking about the concert make you
feel?” and was measured on a scale from 1 (Extremely bad)
to 7 (Extremely good). The final item asked, “How has the
concert affected your current happiness?” and was measured
on a scale from 1 (I would be much happier now if I hadn’t
gone to the concert) to 7 (I still feel a strong mood boost from
the concert). The three items formed a reliable scale (3a: α =
.80; 3b: α = .73).
Also measured were participants’ state CE and state MIL
during the event. These were measured in the same way as in
Study 2. Both the state CE (3a: α = .92; 3b: α = .90) and
state MIL (five items; 3a: α = .82; 3b: α = .83) scales were
reliable in both the student sample and the community
sample.
Statistical Approach. Using Amos version 29.0 (Arbuckle,
2019), a path model with full information maximum likeli-
hood (FIML) estimation of missing data was used to evaluate
the conceptual model (Figure 1). This conceptual model was
derived from the hypotheses presented above, which were
developed based on existing literature on live music experi-
ences, CE, and wellbeing (e.g., Csíkszentmihályi, 1990;
Gabriel et al., 2017; Keltner & Haidt, 2003; Pizarro et al.,
2022; Wlodarczyk et al., 2020; Zumeta et al., 2016).
To examine the model’s fit, the chi-square statistic com-
paring the model with a saturated model was evaluated.
According to standard practices, a chi-square significance
probability of >0.05 suggests adequate model fit. Direct and
indirect effects were examined relying on a (k = 2,000) bias-
corrected bootstrap technique to address non-normality in
the product of coefficients (Tibshirani & Efron, 1993; Fritz
& MacKinnon, 2007; Muthén & Muthén, 2017). Additionally,
95% asymmetric confidence intervals around the estimates
were examined to determine the significance of direct and
indirect effects. Observed means, standard deviations, and
correlations among all variables can be found in Table 3.
The model yielded a good fit to the data, χ2 (1 df) = 0.23,
p = .6333. Significant direct paths are modeled in Figure 2.
Multigroup path analysis was used to estimate models that
8 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 00(0)
constrained paths to be equal across samples (community
sample and university sample) and found no significant sam-
ple differences, χ2 (11 df) = 15.55, p = .159. Therefore, the
samples were combined, and these effects are discussed and
modeled in Figure 2. Unstandardized parameter estimates
and standard errors are provided in the text and standardized
coefficients are presented in Figure 2.
Results
Analyses and Discussion
Elements of Live Music and CE. Our first hypothesis for this
study was that elements of live music events would be related
to CE. In support, each of the assessed elements of live music
events were directly related to CE. Lyrical immersion (B =
0.48, SE. = 0.04, Z = 10.78, p < .001), parasocial bonds
with the artist (B = 0.31, SE = 0.05, Z = 6.61, p < .001),
Figure 1. Conceptual model displaying all tested direct pathways in the model.
Table 3. Correlations Among All Measures in Study 3a and 3b.
M
3a (3b)
SD
3a (3b) Measure 1 2 3 4 5 6
4.81 (5.62) 1.26 (0.99) 1. Parasocial bonds — .55*** .12* .45*** .44*** .54***
5.20 (6.11) 1.44 (0.92) 2. Lyrical Immersion .80*** — .03 .61*** .47*** .58***
3.29 (2.99) 1.00 (0.98) 3. Being with friends .13 .16 — .07 .19** .17**
4.97 (5.52) 1.02 (0.84) 4. Continued Happiness .71*** .72*** .15 — .42*** .56***
4.21 (4.86) 1.33 (1.06) 5. Meaning in Life .62*** .60*** .06 .52*** — .59***
4.60 (5.21) 1.31 (1.02) 6. State Collective Effervescence .73*** .79*** .19* .68*** .75*** —
Note. Correlations in lower diagonal region show values for Study 3a data. Correlations in upper diagonal region show values for Study 3b data.
*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001
and being with friends at the music event (B = 0.11, SE =
0.04, Z = 2.93, p = .003) were all directly related to greater
feelings of CE.
CE and Meaning in Life during the Event. Our second
hypothesis for this study was that elements of live music
events and resulting feelings of CE would be related to
meaning in life during the event. In support, we found that
CE was directly related to greater MIL during the event (B =
0.54, SE = 0.05, Z = 10.27, p < .001).
Next, we assessed the relationships between each of the
elements of live music, CE, and MIL. In addition to CE, the
parasocial bond one had with the musical artist was also
directly related to greater MIL (B = 0.15, SE = 0.05, Z =
2.92, p = .003).
Additionally, each of the assessed elements of live music
events was related to greater MIL through CE. Lyrical
Koefler et al. 9
immersion was indirectly related to greater MIL through CE
(indirect effect = 0.26, SE = 0.04, p < .001, 95% CI [0.11,
0.34]), as were parasocial bonds with the artist (indirect
effect = 0.17, SE = 0.03, p < .001, 95% CI [0.11, 0.24]),
and being with friends at the event (indirect effect = 0.06,
SE. = 0.02, p < .001, 95% CI [0.02, 0.10]). Therefore, all
three of these variables led to MIL during an event due to the
amount of CE that they generated.
CE and Continued Happiness After the Event. Our second
hypothesis was also that elements of live music events and
resulting feelings of CE would be related to continued feelings
of happiness one week after the live music event. In support,
CE was found to be directly related to greater continued happi-
ness after the event (B = 0.21, SE = 0.04, Z = 5.24, p < .001).
Next, we assessed relationships between each of the ele-
ments of live music events, CE, and continued happiness. We
found that both parasocial bonds with the artist (B = 0.12,
SE = 0.04, Z = 2.93, p = .003) and lyrical immersion (B =
0.30, SE = 0.04, Z = 7.46, p < .001) also directly predicted
continued happiness.
In addition, each of the assessed elements of live music
events was related to greater happiness after the concert
through CE. Lyrical immersion was indirectly related to
greater happiness through CE (indirect effect = 0.10, SE =
0.02, p < .001, 95% CI [0.06, 0.15]), as were parasocial
bonds with the artist (indirect effect = 0.06, SE = 0.02, p <
.001, 95% CI [0.04, 0.10]), and being with friends at the
event (indirect effect = 0.02, SE = 0.01, p < .001, 95% CI
[0.01, 0.04]). Therefore, all of these variables led to contin-
ued happiness one week after the music event due to the
amount of CE that they experienced.
Studies 3a and 3b Discussion
Studies 3a and 3b replicated the findings of the first two stud-
ies that suggest that CE is an important part of live music
events and can explain some of their positive outcomes. In
addition, the study suggested that parasocial bonds with art-
ists, lyrical immersion, and attending concerts with friends
can all lead to positive outcomes via CE. Further, these
results revealed that CE predicted continued happiness one
week after the event. The experience of CE at live music
events lingered, leaving participants feeling good for days.
Overall, the findings of Studies 3a and 3b continue to support
the importance of CE in contributing to lasting benefits fol-
lowing live music events.
General Discussion
Across four studies using both university and community
samples, we find support for the importance of CE in explain-
ing both the short and long-term effects of attending live
music events. In Study 1, we established the link between
music and CE. Music is more likely to be present in events
that people describe as eliciting CE compared to non-CE
events. This suggests that elements of live music events are
likely to lead to CE, and that CE and live music events are
highly related.
We then explored whether CE explained the positive out-
comes people report from attending live music events. CE
was found to uniquely predict positive feelings of MIL and
enjoyment over and above other constructs related to CE
such as emotional synchrony, awe, and flow. In fact, CE was
the only predictor of both enjoyment of the event and MIL.
Figure 2. Fit model displaying all significant direct pathways with standardized beta coefficient estimates. N = 422; *p < 0.05,
**p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.
10 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 00(0)
The findings of Study 2 suggest that CE has a unique rela-
tionship to live music events even when accounting for
related constructs. We suspect that the feelings of transcen-
dence and connection inherent in experiences of CE make it
a powerful elicitor of positive outcomes. Though other con-
structs have similar qualities to CE, they are limited in their
ability to result in positive outcomes when compared with
CE, perhaps because they lack both aspects of connection
and transcendence present in CE. Additionally, when the pre-
dictive power of CE is accounted for, many of the other con-
structs did not predict positive outcomes and, in fact, in the
case of awe, even negatively predicted MIL. Thus, the results
of Studies 1 and 2 suggest that CE is an integral part of live
music events and contributes to short-term positive outcomes
of increased feelings of meaning and enjoyment over and
above other related constructs. In addition, the studies
increase understanding of CE by demonstrating how it not
only differs from other related constructs but also has addi-
tional predictive power.
Studies 3a and 3b examined similar positive outcomes
one week following the live music event to explore whether
CE had an effect on wellbeing even after the event con-
cluded. The results of these studies revealed that feeling CE
was related to greater MIL during the event and continued
happiness after the music event. Not only is CE related to
wellbeing during live music events, but the positive effects
from CE can last over a week after the event.
Furthermore, elements of individuals’ experiences at the
live music event were directly related to increased CE and
increased wellbeing via CE. Parasocial bonds with the artist,
lyrical immersion, and being with friends at the event all led to
increased feelings of CE. This suggests that when people have
bonds with the musical artist that they are watching, are par-
ticularly connected to and immersed in the lyrics of the music
being performed, or are experiencing the event with close oth-
ers, they are likely to feel an increased sense of general con-
nectedness and an experience of the event transcending the
ordinary. The indirect effects suggest that through their rela-
tionship to increased CE, common elements of live music
events (i.e., parasocial bonds with the artist, lyrical immersion,
presence of friends) are also related to the positive benefits of
increased CE: greater MIL during the event and continued
happiness one week after the event. This increases our under-
standing of what factors might be important for CE and how
large group events can increase wellbeing.
Having a parasocial relationship with the artist was also
directly related to happiness one week after the event and
meaning during the event, suggesting that having a parasocial
relationship, independent of experiences of CE, can also
boost positive outcomes during live music events. This sug-
gests that having a parasocial relationship with an artist can
enhance one’s experience with live music events and may
help explain why these events are so enjoyable for fans. This
may even suggest that musical artists who want to enhance
the experience of their fans during their concerts should work
to facilitate parasocial bonds prior to the live event, although
future research is necessary to explore that possibility.
Lyrical immersion was also directly related to happiness
one week after the event due, in part, to the experience of CE
that the musical event elicited. This suggests a positive ben-
efit to fully immersing oneself in the world created by the
music and lyrics when attending live music events. Overall,
this suggests that people should engage in live music events
whenever possible, especially if they are able to attend shows
with artists they feel a special bond with, or if they can attend
with friends. Fully immersing oneself in the music and lyrics
being sung while at these shows is also recommended as this
also enhances happiness even after the event has passed. For
those seeking an immersive experience that enhances overall
wellbeing in the moment and in days to come, they should
look no further than live music events.
It is worth mentioning that these common features of live
music events (i.e., parasocial bonds with the artist, lyrical
immersion, presence of friends) are not exclusive to live
music events alone and may be experienced in other contexts
(e.g., listening to an album with friends). The findings of this
study suggest that CE may also be experienced in these other
contexts and may enhance wellbeing. Future work should
examine these additional contexts where someone might
experience these social features common to live events and
explore if these contexts similarly elicit CE and promote
wellbeing. Additionally, future work could seek to examine
the experience of listening to music alone versus in collec-
tives. Past work suggests that music helps people feel con-
nected to others through means such as CE and reminders of
others (Gabriel & Paravati, 2021), and thus listening to music
may contribute to increased wellbeing even when alone.
Future research may benefit from examining the relation-
ship between CE and other related constructs. We argue that
CE is a higher-order construct that, in part, explains the
occurrence of other phenomena that involve experiences of
oneness with peers such as inclusion of self in other (Aron &
Aron, 1986), and identity fusion (Swann et al., 2012).
Further, experiences such as shared attention (Shteynberg,
2015), i-sharing (Pinel et al., 2006), and shared experience
bonding (Boothby et al., 2014) may be related to the same
underlying factors that encourage feelings of CE (Rime &
Páez, 2023). Future work could examine these relationships
directly through experimental manipulation of shared experi-
ences (e.g., live music events). That work could examine
whether CE is a mechanism by which other processes occur
or whether it occurs concurrently due to shared antecedents.
Limitations and Future Directions
Two limitations of the research are both related to its retro-
spective (rather than experimental) nature. First, social fea-
tures of live music events were measured before CE, and
Koefler et al. 11
thus recollection of these social features could have influ-
enced responses to the CE scale. Second, experimental evi-
dence would add to confidence about causality. Future work
should manipulate various elements of live music events and
examine CE and related outcomes to establish a causal link.
However, the current correlational work does suggest strong
relationships between these variables and suggests that,
regardless of directionality, the presence of these features of
live music are related to greater feelings of CE and more
positive outcomes.
The current research also did not examine all possible
pathways from live music to wellbeing as well as all possible
aspects of a live music event that might lead to CE. However,
based on prior research, the pathways that were examined in
the current work were the most relevant to the best of our
knowledge. Some of the elements and outcomes in the cur-
rent work were not assessed using validated scales, as they
have never been assessed in this way in past research; there-
fore, future work may wish to further validate the use of
these measures (such as the state measure of meaning in life).
Future research may want to examine additional elements of
live music experiences such as one’s involvement in the fan-
dom surrounding the artist or genre or the quality of the
music. Additionally, more pathways to wellbeing may be
assessed, such as feelings of belongingness or deindividua-
tion during the event. Another direction is to examine other
outcomes of live music events. For example, live music
events may be particularly well suited to increasing entitativ-
ity (Hamilton et al., 1998) or spiritual wellbeing. Live music
during other mass events, such as protests and political dem-
onstrations, may also lead to greater collective action through
its relation to CE.
Although listening to pre-recorded music alone has been
found to have numerous health benefits (e.g., Daykin et al.,
2018), we suggest that the experience of CE that comes from
being with other people at live music events is particularly
important for enhanced wellbeing outcomes. But when
attending live music events is unavailable (e.g., the event is
too expensive or is not local), people may still pursue a “live
music” experience when alone. For example, people may
find alternate routes to experiencing live music such as view-
ing recorded events, listening to live albums, or attending
live events virtually. Future research may want to directly
compare listening alone, virtual live music, and actual live
music. Additionally, conducting Study 3b with a community
sample recruited in a naturalistic setting (i.e., a music festi-
val) provides good ecological validity; however, it may have
also biased our sample. For example, the type of person who
attends live music events in the first place may be more
likely to experience wellbeing from live music events than
someone who does not regularly attend. In the current work,
we found that attending live music events had a positive
impact on happiness and meaning in life even a week after
the event. It may be that this impact could last even longer if
individuals engage with live music experiences frequently or
reflect on them nostalgically after the event has passed
(Naidu et al., 2023). Future work could examine the wellbe-
ing of frequent live music attendees, the performers them-
selves, or even crew members of arenas and other concert
venues.
Conclusion
Although past research has found that music is highly tied to
wellbeing, very little was known about how music led to
wellbeing and the special role of live music events. The cur-
rent research contributes new insights into the role that CE
plays in explaining the positive outcomes of music events,
both in the moment and in the days that follow the event. We
find that live music events are not merely fun but can have
lasting, meaningful impacts for those who attend. Through
their relation to CE, live music events offer a unique experi-
ence of connection and enhance wellbeing. Thus, when the
opportunity arises, people should jump at the chance to
attend their favorite artists’ concert, or to go with friends to
see a local band, and immerse themselves in the experience.
Attending these shows just might give a boost of connection,
meaning, and happiness that is missing from ordinary life.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect
to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support
for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This
work was funded by a grant from the Templeton World Charity
Foundation.
ORCID iD
Nicole Koefler https://orcid.org/0009-0000-5758-3508
Supplemental material
Supplemental material is available online with this article.
Notes
1. We report all manipulations, measures, and exclusions in these
studies in the text or in Supplemental Materials.
2. The degrees of freedom in Study 1 results differ slightly across
analyses due to missing data.
3. We also assessed the model including emotional synchrony as
a predictor of CE and the outcome variables, as preregistered.
The results of this model were almost identical with that in the
current model. The full model with emotional synchrony is
included in the Supplemental Materials. We chose not to include
this model in the manuscript as emotional synchrony was exam-
ined in Study 2 as an alternate predictor to CE rather than as a
12 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 00(0)
predictor of CE. Therefore, we felt that including it here as a
predictor of CE would pose a conceptual inconsistency.
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