Influence of musical activities on the prosocial behaviors of preschool children

Music plays a key role in our evolution and contributes to the promotion of interpersonal relationships as well as enhancement of group cohesiveness. In this study, 29 five- to six-year-old preschool children were examined to explore the influence of passive music listening and active music engagement on their helping and sharing behaviors, compared with coloring activities. The results revealed that children’s prosocial behaviors were significantly different under the three conditions, and as compared with passive listening and coloring conditions, children’s prosocial behavior (including helping behavior and sharing behavior) in the active music engagement condition was significantly enhanced. Our research revealed that even short-duration active music engagement can improve children’s prosocial behavior, and the potential benefit of active engagement musical training for the development of preschool children should be recognized.