Effects of an intercultural music course on adolescents’ intergroup attitudes in southwest China

The value of intercultural music learning on intergroup attitudes has been demonstrated in the literature, such as enhancing intercultural sensitivity and building interethnic friendships. However, the process by which intercultural music learning influences intergroup attitudes has not yet been illuminated. This study investigated the impact of an intercultural music course on intergroup attitudes among middle school students (N = 277) from Yi, Han, Mongolian and Tibetan ethnic groups in a multi-ethnic school in Sichuan province, southwest China. The research tools included questionnaire surveys, reflective journals, semi-structured interviews and observational field notes. The findings revealed that the intercultural music course significantly improved the students' intergroup attitudes compared with the regular and non-music courses. The findings further identified six process dimensions that helped capture the gradual changes in students' attitudes towards other groups as well as the cumulative nature of the effects of intercultural music learning. This study sheds light on approaches to using music to learn about, communicate with and appreciate other cultures.