Measuring music-genre preferences: Discrepancies between direct and indirect methods

Abstract

Preferences are essential in explaining consumer choice and have been studied from different standpoints. Some empirical studies aimed at measuring music preferences have used direct procedures (i.e., list of genres), while other studies have used indirect measures (i.e., listening to excerpts of music). This article focuses on analyzing music-genre preferences to identify whether they differ depending on the type of measure used (direct vs. indirect), studying their consistency. A survey was conducted among 753 individuals. The results highlight not only the discrepancies of using one measure or another but also the relevance of familiarity and experience, associated with individuals’ endowment of cultural capital. Findings explain the (in)consistency of reported preferences through direct and indirect means. All in all, the research suggests that direct and indirect methods to measure music preferences may be capturing different dimensions.

Keywords

music genres music preferences expressed preferences underlying preferences consumer behavior cultural capital

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Abernathy

Adams-Price

Henley

(2013). Prescription drug advertisements and older adults: A case for implicit memory. International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, 7(4), 341–356. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPHM-10-2012-0009

Alba

J. W.

Hutchinson

J. W.

Lynch

J. G.

Jr. (1991). Memory and decision making. In Robertson

T. S.

Kassarjian

H. H.

(Eds.), Handbook of consumer behavior (pp. 1–19). Prentice Hall.

Alpert

(1982). The effect of disc jockey, peer, and music teacher approval of music on music selection and preference. Journal of Research in Music Education, 30(3), 173–186. https://doi.org/10.2307/3345084

Chamorro-Premuzic

Furnham

(2007). Personality and music: Can traits explain how people use music in everyday life? British Journal of Psychology, 98, 175–185. https://doi.org/10.1348/000712606X111177

Chartrand

T. L.

Huber

Shiv

Tanner

R. J.

(2008). Nonconscious goals and consumer choice. Journal of Consumer Research, 35(2), 189–201. https://doi.org/10.1086/588685

Colbert

St-James

(2014). Research in arts marketing: Evolution and future directions. Psychology & Marketing, 31(8), 566–575. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20718

Coolen

Hoekstra

(2001). Values as determinants of preferences for housing attributes. Journal of Housing and the Built Environment, 16(3–4), 285–306. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012587323814

Delsing

M. J.

Ter Bogt

T. F.

Engels

R. C.

Meeus

W. H.

(2008). Adolescents’ music preferences and personality characteristics. European Journal of Personality, 22(2), 109–130. https://doi.org/10.1002/per.665

Dhar

Novemsky

(2008). Beyond rationality: The content of preferences. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 18(3), 175–178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2008.04.004

10.

Dollinger

S. J.

(1993). Research note: Personality and music preference: Extraversion and excitement seeking or openness to experience? Psychology of Music, 21(1), 73–77. https://doi.org/10.1177/030573569302100105

11.

Droe

(2006). Music preference and music education: A review of literature. Update, 24, 23–32. https://doi.org/10.1177/87551233060240020103

12.

Dunn

P. G.

de Ruyter

Bouwhuis

D. G.

(2011). Toward a better understanding of the relation between music preference, listening behavior, and personality. Psychology of Music, 40(4), 411–428. https://doi.org/10.1177/0305735610388897

13.

Fernández-Blanco

Pérez-Villadoniga

M. J.

Prieto-Rodríguez

(2017). Looking into the profile of music audiences. In Prieto-Rodriguez

Ateca-Amestoy

V. M.

Ginsburgh

Mazza

O’Hagan

(Eds.), Enhancing participation in the arts in the EU (pp. 141–154). Springer.

14.

Floberg

J. L.

Brown

S. L.

(2013). Engaging next generation audiences: A study of college student preferences towards music and the performing arts (Case Studies in Good Practice). Hopkins Center for the Arts, Dartmouth College.

15.

Fox

W. S.

Wince

M. H.

(1975). Musical taste cultures and taste publics. Youth & Society, 7(2), 198–224. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X7500700205

16.

Friese

Wänke

Plessner

(2006). Implicit consumer preferences and their influence on product choice. Psychology & Marketing, 23(9), 727–740. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20126

17.

Hutchinson

W. J.

Raman

Mantrala

M. K.

(1994). Finding choice alternatives in memory: Probability models of brands name recall. Journal of Marketing Research, 31, 441–461. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224379403100401

18.

Katz-Gerro

(1999). Cultural consumption and social stratification: Leisure activities, musical tastes, and social location. Sociological Perspectives, 42(4), 627–646. https://doi.org/10.2307/1389577

19.

Kivetz

Netzer

Schrift

(2008). The synthesis of preference: Bridging behavioral decision research and marketing science. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 18, 179–186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2008.04.005

20.

Kreutz

Ott

Teichmann

Osawa

Vaitl

(2008). Using music to induce emotions: Influences of musical preference and absorption. Psychology of Music, 36(1), 101–126. https://doi.org/10.1177/0305735607082623

21.

Larsen

Lawson

Todd

(2010). The symbolic consumption of music. Journal of Marketing Management, 26(7–8), 671–685. https://doi.org/10.1080/0267257X.2010.481865

22.

Madsen

C. K.

Byrnes

S. R.

Capperella-Sheldon

D. A.

Brittin

R. V.

(1993). Aesthetic response to music: Musicians versus nonmusicians. Journal of Music Therapy, 30(3), 174–191. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmt/30.3.174

23.

Mellander

Florida

Rentfrow

R. J.

Potter

(2018). The geography of music preferences. Journal of Cultural Economics, 42, 593–618. https//doi.org/10.1007/s10824-018-9320-x

24.

Ministerio de Cultura y Deporte. (2019). Ministry for Culture and Sports. Encuesta de Hábitos y Prácticas Culturales 2018–2019 [Survey of Cultural Habits and Pracitces]. https://www.culturaydeporte.gob.es/dam/jcr:1712f192-d59b-427d-bbe0-db0f3e9f716b/encuesta-de-habitos-y-practicas-culturales-2018-2019.pdf

25.

Peterson

R. A.

(1992). Understanding audience segmentation: From elite and mass to omnivore and univore. Poetics, 21(4), 243–258.

26.

Prior

(2013). Bourdieu and the sociology of music consumption: A critical assessment of recent developments. Sociology Compass, 7(3), 181–193. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12020

27.

Rabin

(1998). Psychology and economics. Journal of Economics Literature, 36, 11–46.

28.

Rentfrow

P. J.

Goldberg

L. R.

Levitin

D. J.

(2011). The structure of musical preferences: A five-factor model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100(6), 1139–1157. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022406

29.

Rentfrow

P. J.

Gosling

S. D.

(2003). The do re mi’s of everyday life: The structure and personality correlates of music preferences. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(6), 12–36. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.6.1236

30.

Rentfrow

P. J.

Gosling

S. D.

(2006). Message in a ballad. The role of music preferences in interpersonal perception. Psychological Science, 17(3), 236–242. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01691.x

31.

Richardson-Klavehn

Bjork

R. A.

(1988). Measures of memory. Annual Review of Psychology, 39(1), 475–543.

32.

Schäfer

Sedlmeier

(2010). What makes us like music? Determinants of music preference. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 4(4), 223–234. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018374

33.

Schubert

(2007). The influence of emotion, locus of emotion and familiarity upon preference in music. Psychology of Music, 35(3), 499–515. https://doi.org/10.1177/0305735607072657

34.

Simonson

(1989). Choice based on reasons: The case of attraction and compromise effects. Journal of Consumer Research, 16, 158–174. https://doi.org/10.1086/209205

35.

Simonson

(2008). Will I like a “medium” pillow? Another look at constructed and inherent preferences. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 18, 155–169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2008.04.002

36.

Slovic

(1995). The construction of preference. American Psychology, 50, 364–371. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.50.5.364

37.

Tversky

Kahneman

(1981). The framing of decisions and the psychology of choice. Science, 211, 453–458. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.7455683

38.

Van Eijck

. (2001). Social differentiation in musical taste patterns. Social Forces, 79(3), 1163–1185. https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.2001.0017

39.

Van Eijck

Lievens

(2008). Cultural omnivorousness as a combination of highbrow, pop, and folk elements: The relation between taste patterns and attitudes concerning social integration. Poetics, 36(2), 217–242. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.poetic.2008.02.002

40.

Van Osselaer

S. M.

Ramanathan

Campbell

M. C.

Cohen

J. B.

Dale

J. K.

Herr

P. M.

. . . Russo

J. E.

(2005). Choice based on goals. Marketing Letters, 16(3–4), 335–346. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-005-5896-y

41.

Warren

McGraw

A. P.

Van Boven

(2011). Values and preferences: Defining preference construction. Cognitive Science, 2(2), 193–205. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.98

42.

Weinberger

N. M.

McGaugh

J. L.

Lynch

(1985). Memory systems of the brain. Guilford.

43.

Zajonc

R. B.

(1980). Feeling and thinking: Preferences need no inferences. American Psychology, 35, 151–175. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.35.2.151

44.

Zweigenhaft

R. L.

(2008). A do re mi encore: A closer look at the personality correlates of music preferences. Journal of Individual Differences, 29(1), 45–55. https://doi.org/10.1027/1614-0001.29.1.45