Stereotypes Concerning Musicians Within Symphony Orchestras

Abstract

The social psychology of musical groups is a new but emerging area of inquiry that is critically reviewed here. Professional musicians (N = 227) from 16 major orchestras throughout the United States and Canada completed a questionnaire dealing with stereotypes and personality traits of musicians from each of the four major orchestral sections (strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion). The brass and strings were consistently on opposite poles of the continua.