Impact of Hindustani ragas in stress management: A statistical study

Abstract

This work is a part of our ongoing research project entitled Hindustani Raga Analysis Using Statistical Musicology with Therapeutic Applications for Stress Management. Using the perceived stress scale (PSS), baseline data were collected on 28 participants, 14 for the control group (non-music intervention group) and the remaining 14 for the case group (music intervention group), the allotment of a participant to one of the groups being done using randomized control trial (RCT) to prevent bias in allocation. After 5 music therapy sessions, the follow-up data were collected and the scores (0, 1, 2, 3, 4) were filled for the 10 questions in the questionnaire of the PSS scale. The rating is 0–13 implying low stress, 14–26 implying moderate stress and 27–40 implying high stress. As per the PSS rule, those having stress levels below 13 were dropped from the study. Thus, the actual number of participants in both groups would be less than those interviewed (sample size n = 7 for each group). Using paired t test, it is found that the case group participants have shown considerable improvement in comparison to the control group. Thus, the efficacy of music intervention in combatting stress is established.