Professional identities and motivations of musicians playing in healthcare settings: Cross-cultural evidence from UK and Italy

Abstract

The role of professional musicians playing in healthcare settings is largely non-documented, chiefly because musicians have worked on a voluntary basis or outside established music programmes. However, research in arts and health suggest that these musicians have acquired a level of expertise and that they have consequently developed a professional identity related to their work. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with two groups of musicians performing in healthcare settings in UK (N = 8) and Italy (N = 9) to investigate their motivations and perceived musical and interpersonal skills developed in their work. Interview data suggest that such musicians are highly motivated, wanting to perform in a variety of healthcare settings, often for strongly moral reasons, occasionally because of religious reasons. Musicians were conscious of the fact that any positive outcome of their performance was unlikely without possessing specific skills in social interaction, entailing empathy, appreciation, openness, flexibility of response and a sense of humour. The results are discussed in the light of the literature on professionalism and professional identity in healthcare settings.