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Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song": Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays "Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song": Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays Seth Swary sds0021@mix.wvu.edu Follow this and additional works at: https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd Part of the Applied Behavior Analysis Commons, and the Sports Studies Commons Recommended Citation Swary, Seth, ""Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song": Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays" (2020). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 7677. https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/7677 This Dissertation is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by the The Research Repository @ WVU with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Dissertation in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you must obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Dissertation has been accepted for inclusion in WVU Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports collection by an authorized administrator of The Research Repository @ WVU. For more information, please contact researchrepository@mail.wvu.edu. Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports 2020 "Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song": Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays "Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song": Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays Seth Swary Follow this and additional works at: https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd Part of the Applied Behavior Analysis Commons, and the Sports Studies Commons “Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song”: Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays Seth Swary, MA Dissertation submitted to the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences at West Virginia University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology Sam Zizzi, Ed.D., Co-Chair Jack Watson II, Ph.D., Co-Chair Jesse Michel, Ph.D. Ashley Coker-Cranney, Ph.D. Ed Jacobs, Ph.D. College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences Department of Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology Morgantown, West Virginia July 2020 Keywords: sport psychology, emotion regulation, baseball, sport performance, performance enhancement, qualitative Copyright 2020 Seth D. Swary Abstract “Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song”: Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays Seth Swary, MA During competition, athletes are consistently regulating their own emotions (Friesen et al., 2013a) and the emotions of their teammates (Tamminen et al., 2016). Athletes have identified music as a strategy used for both intrapersonal (Lane, Davis, & Devonport, 2011) and interpersonal emotion regulation (Friesen et al., 2015), while also using music for association/dissociation, enhancing performance, facilitating flow, and improving their qualitative experiences (Gabana et al., 2019). Though theories have been proposed on athletes’ individual (Bishop, Karageorghis, & Loizou, 2007) and group music use (Karageorghis et al., 2018), they are yet to be widely applied to other sports. Further examination is thus still needed to better understand the group-level uses of music and the lived experiences of athletes listening to music, and to further develop theories. Researchers in the present study utilized a descriptive phenomenological psychological method (Giorgi, Giorgi, & Morley, 2017), interviewing nine professional baseball players on how they experience music on a gameday. Results are divided into sections focusing on individual, team, and stadium listening, then compared to theories on emotion regulation (Campo et al., 2017; Gross, 1998), music in sport (Bishop, Karageorghis, & Loizou, 2007; Karageorghis et al., 2018), and relevant theories in the field of sport psychology (e.g., Martin, Moritz, & Hall, 1999). Implications for athletes, coaches, sport psychology professionals, and professional baseball organizations are discussed. BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION iii Acknowledgements I quickly realized this section would be the hardest to write of the document as I fear that it will never be good enough to capture my gratitude for all of those who have helped me along the way. This document is a culmination of a journey that has taken me across the country and united me with people from around the world, and I am incredibly thankful for everyone along the journey. Here goes nothing… To my family – though you may not understand what I do or why, you have loved me and supported me nonetheless. Thank you! To those I met at OWU – thank you for showing me a new way to look at the world and helping me to grow as a person. To those I met in Denver – thank you for setting me on a path in this field, giving me the tools to succeed, and for believing in me. All of the faculty and friends at DU, and friends from Parks & Rec, thank you for giving me a new home. To those I met in West Virginia – I never thought I would say that! Thank you to all of the faculty, staff, and friends I have met over the past 4 years. I have grown more than I thought I ever would both professionally and personally. My time in WV brought me close friendships, two kitties, and an engagement. Thank you! To my colleagues at Oakland University – thank you for believing in me before I even finished my degree, and thanks for hiring me! For those involved in this project – Dr. Watson, thank you for always challenging me and pushing me. Dr. Jacobs, thank you for always believing in me and supporting me. Dr. Michel, thank you for encouraging me to think beyond the walk-up song and giving invaluable support along the way. Dr. Coker-Cranney, thank you for being a qualitative methods guru and giving me the knowledge and support to do this study well. And Dr. Zizzi, thank you for guiding (and putting up with!) me through these past few years. Thank you to my research team (Tommy, Kate, & Erika) for being so willing to help and providing thoughts and insights that have made this project so much better. Last, but not least, my honorary committee member, Dr. Zenzi Huysmans, whose support and feedback are more appreciated than I could ever say. Finally, to Lauren, Louise, and Bellamy – the aforementioned kitties and engagement, you are my why. You make me want to be a better person every day, and I am able to continue growing and pursuing my dreams because I have you with me. Thank you, and I love you! All of this is to say, though I still don’t know much, the one thing I know is that I am loved. “When you are loved, you can do anything in creation. When you are loved, there’s no need at all to understand what’s happening, because everything happens within you.” -Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION iv Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 Emotion Regulation in Sport ............................................................................................ 1 Music for Emotion Regulation in Sport .......................................................................... 3 Purpose ............................................................................................................................... 5 Methods .......................................................................................................................................... 5 Research Design and Sampling Approach ...................................................................... 6 Philosophical Assumptions ............................................................................................... 6 Procedures .......................................................................................................................... 6 Data Analysis ..................................................................................................................... 8 Research Quality and Rigor ........................................................................................... 10 Results ........................................................................................................................................... 11 Individual Listening ........................................................................................................ 11 Team Listening ................................................................................................................ 16 Stadium ............................................................................................................................. 20 Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 26 Music Selection and Use .................................................................................................. 26 Music for Emotion Regulation ....................................................................................... 29 Music and Sport Psychology ........................................................................................... 29 Practical Implications ..................................................................................................... 30 Limitations and Future Directions ................................................................................. 31 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 32 References .................................................................................................................................... 33 Appendix A: Figures .................................................................................................................... 38 Appendix B: Descriptive Phenomenological Psychological Method .......................................... 40 Appendix C: Email/Message Templates ...................................................................................... 42 Appendix D: Interview Probe Questions ...................................................................................... 44 Appendix E: Participant Demographics Table ............................................................................. 45 Appendix F: Self-Reflexive Statement ........................................................................................ 46 Appendix G: Analytic Memos ..................................................................................................... 49 Appendix H: Extended Review of Literature ............................................................................... 63 Emotional Intelligence in Sport ...................................................................................... 64 Emotion Regulation in Sport .......................................................................................... 71 BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION v Intrapersonal emotion regulation .................................................................................. 73 Interpersonal emotion regulation .................................................................................. 83 Music in Sport .................................................................................................................. 91 Conclusion and Future Recommendations ................................................................. 108 Extended References ..................................................................................................... 110 BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 1 “Yo, I Like Your Walk-Up Song”: Music Integration in Professional Baseball Gamedays Introduction Emotions are a prevalent aspect of the sport experience as athletes prepare themselves for practice and competition, and to cope with the stress associated with pressures to perform. Athletes, then, are constantly experiencing various emotions and engaging in strategies to regulate their own emotions (Lane, Davis, & Devonport, 2011) and those of their teammates (Friesen et al., 2013b). One’s ability to recognize and understand emotions, express emotions, and regulate emotions is also referred to as emotional intelligence (EI; Mayer & Salovey, 1997). Athletes with higher scores on measurements of EI report more pleasant emotions prior to competition (Lane et al., 2010) and use psychological skills more frequently (see Laborde, Dosseville, & Allen, 2016 for a review). In regard to objective measures of athletic performance, research indicated that EI has a moderate influence (7-23%) on pitching performance (Zizzi, Deaner, & Hirschorn, 2003), total games played by professional hockey players (Perlini & Halverson, 2006), and cricket team performance (Crombie, Lombard, & Noakes, 2009). Emotion Regulation in Sport Emotion regulation, one aspect of emotional intelligence, has hedonic (i.e., increase pleasant emotions/decrease unpleasant emotions) and instrumental (i.e., facilitate the pursuit of a goal) functions (Tamir, Mitchell, & Gross, 2008). Instrumental emotion regulation may be particularly relevant to sport performance given the individualized relationship between emotions and performance, as conceptualized in the Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning model (IZOF; Hanin, 2000). IZOF posits that athletes regulate emotions to facilitate successful performance more so than to maximize pleasant moods. In a recent study examining the instrumental emotion regulation strategies of athletes, Lane and colleagues (2011) found that BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 2 athletes’ choices about increasing anger and/or anxiety was influenced by their meta-beliefs about the impact of emotions on performance. Additionally, the use of effective emotion regulation strategies led to winning 54-100% of the following points in a small study of table tennis players (χ2=3.99-37.59; Martinent et al., 2015) and helped to prevent choking under pressure in a putting task regardless of arousal level (η2=0.41; Balk et al., 2013). While emotion regulation has been a common topic in the field of sport, exercise, and performance psychology (SEPP) in recent years, most researchers have focused on intrapersonal regulation (i.e., regulating own emotions; see Campo et al., 2017). A recent shift in the literature has occurred, however, in which researchers have recognized the impact of social and interpersonal processes, such as talking to teammates and communal coping, on emotion regulation (Friesen et al., 2013a; 2013b; 2015; Tamminen & Crocker, 2013; Tamminen et al., 2016). The process model of emotion regulation (PMER; Gross, 1998) has been commonly used in other areas of psychology but has received less attention in the context of sports (Campo et al., 2017). According to the model, individuals are proposed to regulate emotions through situation selection, situation modification, attentional deployment, cognitive change, and/or response modulation. The first four of these five “families” of emotion regulation strategies are considered antecedent-focused, in that they take place in preparation for the emotional response, while the last family is response-focused, occurring after the emotional response to alter specific emotions being experienced (Gross, 1998). In a recent two-part study on rugby players’ use of emotion regulation strategies, Campo and colleagues (2017) found support for each of the five families proposed in the process model. Additionally, within each of the families, strategies were further divided into self-regulation and interpersonal regulation, which can again be separated into co regulation and extrinsic regulation. An examination of participants’ motives for regulating BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 3 emotion were revealed to be egoistic (for personal benefit), altruistic (for the benefit of a teammate), or both. These results, along with findings from Friesen et al. (2013a) that athletes’ personal emotions informed their decision-making, emphasize the importance of the individual’s own emotional states and meta-beliefs on his/her decisions about regulating the emotions of teammates. One strategy cited by athletes in the study that fits within several families in the PMER was music listening. Music for Emotion Regulation in Sport Athletes report commonly experiencing prevalent emotional reactions to music (Laukka & Quick, 2011), and researchers in sport psychology have already identified music as an effective intrapersonal (Bishop, Karageorghis, & Loizou, 2007; Elliott, Polman, & Taylor, 2014; Lane, Davis, & Devonport, 2011) and interpersonal emotion regulation strategy (Friesen et al., 2015). In a recent study by Middleton, Ruiz, and Robazza (2017), a 5-week intervention tying music selection with psychoeducation about the IZOF model (Hanin, 2000) helped to improve swimmers’ perceived ability to regulate their preperformance states and had a positive impact on the perceived effectiveness of their preperformance routines. Further, Gabana and colleagues (2019) found that professional golfers use music as an associative and dissociative mechanism, as well as to regulate their energy/arousal levels, regulate mood, enhance mental performance states, facilitate flow, and improve their qualitative experience. Golfers reported listening to music with others and alone, and commonly did so during their pre-performance routines and while practicing. Terry and colleagues (2020) sought to quantify the effects of music in the contexts of exercise and sport in a meta-analysis, finding that music significantly influences affective responses (g=0.48), ratings of perceived exertion (g=0.22), and overall performance (g=0.31). BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 4 Similar to the trends seen in the sport emotion regulation literature, the bulk of research on the impact of music in athletic domains has been focused on the intrapersonal impact on athletes in individual sports. Bishop et al. (2007) proposed a theory of music use through interviews with tennis players and stated that aspects such as the athlete’s extra-musical associations with the song, family and peer influences, film soundtracks/music videos, acoustical properties, and level of identification with the lyrics or the artist determine an athlete’s pool of emotive music from which to choose. The athlete’s selection of a song is then mediated by situational and emotional content/intensity factors. After the athlete selects a song, the actual emotional intensity experienced is mediated by the time between listening and performance, the way in which it is delivered (e.g., headphones, sound system), and modifiable musical properties (e.g., tempo, intensity). The latest grounded theory, proposed by Karageorghis and colleagues (2018) through interviews with soccer players, extends the previous theory of music use to the group level. In their theory, Karageorghis et al. suggest that music components and extra-musical associations determine a team’s pool of emotive music, with the selection mediated by group factors (music selector, group cohesion, team atmosphere), task-related factors, and personal factors. Each of these aspects then influence the effects of music on group cohesion, team performance gains, and group psychological benefits (e.g., opponent intimidation, residual effects). While a solid theoretical founding exists for music as an individual performance enhancement technique (e.g., Gabana et al., 2019) and intrapersonal emotion regulation strategy (e.g., Bishop et al., 2007) in sport, additional research is still needed to better understand the impact of music on group performance and for interpersonal emotion regulation. For example, are the benefits to team sport athletes limited to emotional regulation or do these athletes endorse BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 5 other uses? Further, the group music use theory proposed by Karageorghis and colleagues (2018) has yet to be applied to athletes participating in a team sport other than soccer and additional research is still needed to understand how music use is experienced at the group level. The aim of the present research, then, was to explore the experience of athletes selecting and using music in the context of a team sport and how they experience music individually and as a team for regulating emotions, enhancing performance, and influencing other team factors (e.g., team cohesion). Research Design and Sampling Approach Methods A descriptive phenomenological approach (Giorgi, Giorgi, & Morley, 2017) was used to understand players’ lived experiences and meanings associated with music throughout a typical gameday. The researchers purposively sampled professional baseball players as the sport offers a unique context in which baseball is a team sport but consists of a series of individual performances. Further, music is played before and throughout games, including the unique aspect of walk-up songs in which a player selects the song he wants to be played throughout the stadium immediately prior to his performance. The researchers interviewed a total of 9 participants, fitting within the 8-12 range generally considered appropriate for phenomenological studies (Creswell, 2013). While initially hoping to achieve maximum variation (Patton, 2002) with participant demographics, time limits and the COVID-19 pandemic led to the authors shifting focus primarily to convenience. Participants identified as White (n = 8) and Hispanic (n = 1), ranged in age from 19 to 26 (M = 23.5), and had an average of 2.4 years’ experience playing at the collegiate level and 3.0 years’ experience playing professional baseball. Four of the participants were assigned to the AA level of their organization at the time of data collection, BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 6 two were assigned to Class A-Advanced (“High A”), one in Class A (“Low A”), one in Class A short season, and one at the Rookie level. Participants represented a variety of positions including first baseman (n = 2), catcher (n = 1), relief pitcher (n = 5), and starting pitcher (n = 1). Philosophical Assumptions The researchers approached the study from a constructivist paradigm, accepting the assumptions of a relativist ontology (i.e., existence of multiple realities that are locally and specifically constructed individually) and a transactional/subjectivist epistemology (i.e., the researcher and participant work together to co-construct knowledge; Guba & Lincoln, 2005). This paradigm aligns strongly with the approach of the descriptive phenomenological psychological method as described by Giorgi, Giorgi, and Morley (2017), in which researchers aim to reduce participants’ experience with a specific phenomenon down to its core meaning or essence from a psychological perspective. Further, the researchers employed strategies outlined by Bevan (2014) to conduct a descriptive phenomenological interview, allowing the researchers to explore the phenomenon of music listening from multiple realities and co-construct knowledge by actively participating in interviews. Procedures Following approval by the West Virginia University institutional review board, the authors recruited participants through connections with coaches and team mental skills consultants, who served as gatekeepers for this study, on professional baseball teams. The first author contacted mental skills coaches of four different professional baseball organizations and a position coach from a fifth organization, with only one contact declining participation. The coaches and mental skills consultants of the four organizations who agreed to help were sent an email providing a brief overview of the study, information on what participation would entail, BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 7 and contact information for the first author. Contacts then forwarded the information to players within their respective organizations and interested players contacted the first author to schedule an interview to be conducted via Zoom. One contact from the first organization declined participation, while four players each from two of the organizations and two players from the fourth contacted the first author to be interviewed. One player did not complete data collection after scheduling the interview. As the interviews took place virtually, participants provided verbal consent in lieu of signed documentation to take part in the study. In line with descriptive phenomenological interviewing proposed by Bevan (2014), the interviewers asked descriptive and structural questions to address the themes of contextualization (i.e., understanding the phenomenon in its naturally experienced context), apprehending the phenomenon (i.e., understanding the typical attitude/approach to the phenomenon), and clarifying the phenomenon (i.e., imagining how the experience of the phenomenon would change in various contexts/circumstances). In line with the constructivist paradigm, Bevan (2014) argued that one question alone is insufficient for capturing the multiple ways of expressing one’s experience and interviewers must be prepared to ask additional descriptive questions. The interviewers thus asked each participant the same open-ended question (i.e., “Tell me about your experience with music on a baseball gameday.”) to provide contextual information and identify potential areas for further inquiry, with follow-up probes being used to achieve deeper descriptions, structure, quality, and clarity of the participants’ experience (e.g., “Tell me what would happen if you were not able to listen to music in the way that you typically do,” “Tell me about the effect(s) you think music has on your team as a group.”). While a general list of potential probe questions was developed to assist in the consistency of the research (Bevan, 2014), probe questions were only used if first prompted by the participant and questions were BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 8 adapted for each individual conversation. Interviews ranged from 24 to 50 minutes in length (M = 33 minutes), were audio-recorded, and were transcribed verbatim by the first author and an undergraduate research assistant. During transcription, all names were replaced with pseudonyms and identifying information was removed to protect participants’ confidentiality. Data Analysis Analysis of the transcripts followed the five-step analysis outlined by Giorgi and colleagues (2017) for descriptive phenomenological psychological studies. A primary research team, consisting of two students and two recent graduates of a doctoral program for Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology (SEPP), took a collaborative approach to analysis as the relativist ontology recognizes multiple realities, thus multiple perspectives of the text were sought. The first step included the four members of the primary research team reading the entire transcripts in order to gain an overall sense of the description, followed by the second step in which the primary research team assumed the attitude of phenomenological psychological reduction (i.e., “view the lived experiences as manifestations of the lived meanings and values expressed by concrete human subjects,” Giorgi et al., 2017, p. 181). Once the phenomenological psychological reduction was assumed, the third step consisted of the researchers, while rereading transcripts, separating the experience into meaning units by marking slashes when he/she subjectively experienced a shift in meaning. Meaning units were then copied into analysis spreadsheets, with each cell representing a unique meaning unit. All data were included in this stage to avoid favoring of some data over others. Within the fourth step, the researchers transformed the meaning units identified in step three in phenomenologically and psychologically sensitive ways in order to generalize the meaning for comparison with the other descriptions. Some transformations took place once while others occurred several times BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 9 depending on the psychological richness of the unit, and each transformation was presented in the analysis spreadsheets to allow others to follow clearly. Lastly, the researchers reviewed the final transformations in the fifth step to determine key meanings and what is essential to the description of the phenomenon. An example of this process would be Randy’s statement regarding the American and Latino/Hispanic athletes playing music in the clubhouse that, “I think that’s… good for both sides and they’re kind of bringing and we are kind of sharing some of our [music] with them. And at the end of the day that doesn’t do nothing but help us grow as teammates I feel like” being identified as an initial meaning unit. This unit was first transformed to, “He thinks music in the clubhouse is good to share culture amongst teammates and helps them to grow as teammates,” and then again to, “Music can be used for sharing culture and increasing team cohesion.” Each member of the primary group completed the steps separately over a span of eight weeks, meeting for weekly debriefs to discuss thoughts on and questions about the data. Following the fifth step, the primary team then discussed the essential factors identified in each individual interview and compared the findings across interviews and members. An SEPP faculty member served as a critical friend following the fourth step, and an additional SEPP faculty member served as a final critical friend for the fifth step. As emphasized in the descriptive phenomenological psychological approach (Giorgi et al., 2017), the authors then compared the final data to that of existing theoretical models of athlete music use (Karageorghis et al., 2018), general models of emotion regulation (Gross, 1998), and emotion regulation in sport (Campo et al., 2017). Suitability of this approach to analysis was gleaned from similar data analyses used in recent publications in the field of sport psychology (e.g., Coker-Cranney et al., 2017; Grindstaff, Wrisberg, & Ross, 2010; Wadey et al., 2013). BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 10 Research Quality and Rigor As the researchers adopted a constructivist paradigm, a standardized list of criteria (e.g., Tracy, 2010) for judging the quality of qualitative inquiries was not applicable (see Smith & McGannon, 2017). Instead, constructivist researchers have been encouraged to select criteria relevant to the purpose and context of the study (Smith & McGannon, 2017). The researchers in the present study worked to ensure rigor and quality through several strategies including the creation of self-reflexive statements, conducting a pilot interview, maintaining analytic memos, and the use of critical friends. Prior to analysis, each member of the primary research team created a self-reflexive statement to assist in bracketing, assuming the scientific phenomenological reduction (Giorgi et al., 2017), and to increase dependability in the research through transparency. To further increase dependability and transparency, each of the steps taken in analysis were recorded and saved (including each transformation) while all members of the primary research team kept analytic memos following each step. Many of the memos described initial reactions to and thoughts about the text, which assisted the research team in bracketing those thoughts and reactions before returning to the data to explore alternative interpretations. To address confirmability, the researchers conducted a pilot interview prior to the study with a collegiate club baseball player and employed the use of critical friends throughout analysis. The inclusion of critical friends acknowledged the possibility of other interpretations of the data and allowed for challenges to interpretations and opportunities for dialogue (Smith & McGannon, 2017). During analysis, the investigators remained open and responsive to the process while employing verification strategies as identified by Morse and colleagues (2002). The researchers selected a descriptive psychological phenomenological method to best align with questions BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 11 regarding players’ experience with music (i.e., methodological coherence) and interviewed professional baseball players with unique and extensive experience with music (i.e., appropriate sample). Data was concurrently collected and analyzed, while ideas that emerged during analysis were recorded for verification in later interviews (e.g., thinking theoretically). Lastly, proposed theories were used for comparison and new findings helped to further develop said theories. Results Participants described music being integral throughout their gameday experiences. The results were thus divided into three sections representing the levels at which music was used by participants: individually, with the team, and in the stadium. Certain aspects of the music experience (e.g., music in routines, process of selecting music, the purpose of music, the impact of music, and walk-up songs) permeated through every level of use, though they were altered slightly with each level. These levels were not static, but rather overlapped with one another as demonstrated in Figure 1. Individual Listening [Insert Figure 1 here] At the individual level, players described listening to music in their vehicles on the way to and from the stadium (e.g., it “kind of starts like earlier in the day almost. You know, driving to the park.” -Sam; “On the road… I like to listen to music when we all get on the bus and we are on our way to the field.” -Luis) and through headphones on the bus and in the clubhouse/locker room. Participants described choosing music for themselves based on personal preferences, expressing a range of preferences and tastes in music, while also being generally flexible in the type of music to which they listened. Personal music preferences were typically developed through identification with the music through such facets as their memories and associations with BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 12 certain music, experiences, and cultural backgrounds. Ken conveyed his preference for country music in saying, “my town is like 1,500 people, I mean super small town. A lot of dirt roads, a lot of mountains, like I’m a country boy, and, uh, that music relaxes me, man.” Selection. Players were able to exercise autonomy in their music selections when listening individually, though not always intentionally choosing particular songs. Participants explained the importance of timing in that their music use earlier in the day was typically focused on entertainment and served more as “background noise,” with selections being less intentional (e.g., listening to the radio, putting personal music on shuffle). This music was primarily used as a way of improving the qualitative experience earlier in the day. Music selections then become more intentional and purposeful as the game neared with the overall goal shifting to that of enhancing individual performance. To do so, players selected music they felt would help them with such skills as regulating energy/arousal, regulating emotions, and allocating attention. Purpose. The reason most frequently cited reason for music use was energy/arousal management. Players expressed that music helped them both to decrease and increase energy/arousal levels depending on their individual needs. Using music for energy/arousal regulation was most commonly used immediately prior to performance, with the direction of regulation depending on the players’ perceptions of what will help them best perform. Lee expressed experiencing a decrease in energy/arousal while listening to music, saying, “I will be listening to music for probably about an hour or so… before we have to get out on the field, and I just kinda let that lead me into the game… kind of step out on the field in a relaxed, calm state and just be ready for the game at that point.” Other participants like Dan, however, used music at the same point to increase arousal/energy, noting that he wants to have so much energy that he, “feel[s] like [he] could run through a wall when [he’s] listening to music.” BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 13 Players also conveyed using music for emotion regulation, most frequently in decreasing feelings of stress and anxiety and increasing feelings of happiness, calmness, inspiration, and confidence. Three participants discussed regulating their emotions by listening to music that triggers memories associated with the desired emotion. Ken mentioned using music to help him tap in to his “happy place,” while Ron summarized this aspect in saying: Certain songs can trigger nostalgia or, you know, past events in our life where this song reminds us of it… there’s a song that, it’s one of my favorite songs, and I’ll listen to it before games all the time because it reminds me of when… I was trying to get a scholarship for college. And this same song was always playing… whenever I was working out or hitting at this sports facility. And at this particular time in my life, I was trying to get back into baseball and… so every time this song would pop up in my playlist or whatever, it reminds me of that time in my life. And it’s truly inspiring because… I think of the song at the point in time to where I was introduced to the song, and now here I am listening to that same song and I’m in my dream scenario, right? Regarding emotion regulation at the individual level, participants primarily referred to using music to elicit a certain emotion rather than match what they are feeling at the time. Another reason identified by participants for using music was to assist in attention management. Participants described using music to help in directing attention to the task at hand (e.g., “leading up to the game, like if I need… if I’m way checked-out, music will kind of check you back in.” -Eric), as well as using it as a form of distraction. Ken discussed this form of music use for lifting weights, saying: That music, it just helps me get in the weight room, get my stuff done. I’m listening to… the pump up music and it kind of just takes my mind away from, “Damnit, I’ve got to go BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 14 back into the weight room again man, this is going to suck and I know my body is going to feel like hell while I’m going through this workout.” But like when I have that music blasting in the background, it… kind of helps me forget about all that it helps me, uh, like kind of drown out those thoughts. Similar to distracting from fatigue to complete difficult workouts, participants expressed using music to alleviate boredom and get through what can, at times, be repetitive, mundane schedules. Music use was not the same throughout players’ experiences, but rather all participants described their experience with selecting music on a gameday as a learning process. Players expressed changing the music they listen to on gamedays through previous experiences and reflection on associated performance. Lee summarized this learning process from his experience, stating: And I found the higher tempo… more, you know, like hard rap, that kind of stuff, kinda had me a little more on edge and I would get more upset about mistakes instead of just kind of letting them go. Especially since it was just the bullpen, and then I would kind of bring that into my game and if I made a bad pitch or something, I would get really frustrated instead of just focusing on the next pitch and letting it fall by the wayside. And I found when I listen to, you know slower more relaxed music… kind of put me in that mindset. Reflections on how the individual performed after listening to certain music was most often identified as the reason for adapting their song selections. Routine. This learning process, along with the impact of music on energy/arousal regulation, emotion regulation, and attention management, helped players integrate music into their pre-performance routines. Ron stated that he believes “95% of players have some sort of BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 15 music involved with their daily routine… especially at the field,” a testimonial that was supported by other participants. Max provided an example of his own routine, describing it as, “an hour of music that’s like whatever first. Then, as we get closer, it’s more and more serious of music. Then, it’s just like the last seven minutes is Through the Fire and Flames just because that song is seven minutes long.” While all participants discussed music listening in general as part of their routines, a few other participants also mentioned their routine including a particular selection of songs, exemplified by Sam saying that he, “had… 5-10 songs [he] would listen to before… like, almost pretty much the exact same playlist [he] would listen to before each game.” Similarly, Lee explains that he will, “go through streaks where [he]’ll… have a specific 5 to 8 songs” to which he listens while doing dry runs (a warm-up used by pitchers in which they throw pitches while simulating in-game situations). Participants explained that the music within their pre-performance routines helped to trigger a “performance mindset.” Sam spoke to pre-performance routines, noting, “It’s almost like [Pavlov’s dog]… your mom rings the dinner bell… It’s time for me to get my mindset ready… It’s time to be focused. And for the next… 3 or 4 hours I was pretty much locked in.” He went on to explain the consistency of using his routine, saying: With the music, I was able to listen to it and like almost trick my mind into thinking like it didn’t matter where I was, I was in the same place, you know? It’s still going to be a game at 7 o’clock, or like 5 o’clock, no matter what. If I could listen to some of the songs on the playlist, it’s like some familiar almost feel to every day where I know what’s going to happen. BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 16 Players discussed using routines to increase the consistency of their performance, with the accessibility and ease of music being particularly helpful in creating a routine for both home and away games. If they were not able to have music, most participants simply discussed finding alternatives to replace music in their routines that, though difficult or potentially less effective, would still help them achieve the desired objective. Lee summarized identifying an alternative, saying: I honestly think I would have to sit in the field and meditate. Because it puts… you at ease, you know, it kind of relaxes you and gives you… like a focused mindlessness. And like… reaching a level… of sereneness or something like that, like I said I would have to go sit by myself and like you know? Like I said meditate, some type of yoga or something, just ‘cause you have to find something to change that mindset to get you focus into the game and like music is a huge component in that. While not necessary for their performance or experience, participants explained that music acts as a quick, accessible, and effective vehicle that can be utilized for various purposes. Team Listening Routine. Participants described team-level music listening in the clubhouse/locker room via a sound system. Music is a constant in the clubhouse from the perspective of the participants, as Ken stated that, “music is always on in the club house. Always, always,” and Lee reported that, “in the clubhouse we usually… they’re usually playing, you know, some kind of music very loud.” Players conveyed music again playing in the clubhouse after games. Music playing in the clubhouse is such a consistent part of the experience that Tom noted, “the locker room and stuff BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 17 would be really just kind of weird if there was, like, nothing in the background playing. Like that would just be strange. The quiet, yeah, that’d be strange.” Selection. Within the team, participants explained that there is normally a group of 2-3 individuals who rotate having control of the music played over the speaker in the clubhouse, however all players are still able to have some input. As explained by Eric, “you are in a locker room full of outspoken humans. Like, it will happen, someone will yell, ‘Who the hell is on the aux? Change this,’ or whatever it is, so. You’ll get that every now and then.” Participants expressed experiencing a more significant impact of music when they are personally able to be involved in the selection process. Players listening individually were choosing songs based on their personal needs and preferences, while they aimed for more neutral music that would make everyone happy when choosing for the group. Dan, who identified as being one of the individuals responsible for choosing music in the clubhouse for his team, spoke to group music selection in saying, “It is more of a neutral taste that I play with everybody mixed in with a little bit of what I listen to because I’m in in charge, so, I’m going to play what I like, too.” The role of music selector for the group becomes solidified as the season continues depending on which individuals are successful in meeting the needs of the team. This role is typically filled by an older team member who is generally well-liked by teammates. As explained by Tom: I think you have to have like a little bit of a… I don’t know like a swagger. Like you have to be someone… everybody like pretty much likes, you know. And it’s not like gonna be like the guy that like only a few people like. Or like, some people just don’t really like to hang out with or something, you know. They’re not gonna like let them, ‘cause like BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 18 you’re controlling for everyone. So, it’s gotta be… it’s pretty much someone that like everybody’s like cool with and like okay with him being in charge, I guess. Participants conveyed this role as an important role on the team particularly due to the aspect of having control over part of the experience of teammates. Purpose. Similar to individual listening, participants cited music serving as a way of enhancing team performance through regulating the energy/arousal levels and emotions of the group. Participants described music for team energy/arousal regulation in similar pattern as individually, using calmer, more relaxed music earlier and increase the volume and tempo of the music closer to the beginning of the game. Max spoke to this experience following his team’s daily practice, stating the music being played is, “just relaxing. We just got off the field, um, nothing too crazy too, you know? Something that’s not going to get our energy going too much. Then, as game time gets closer and closer, some higher energy stuff.” Many of the participants additionally discussed the use of music in the clubhouse for team emotion regulation. Dan explained music “that gets everyone in the right mood, it really has an effect on just your feelings.” This music can also indirectly affect some participants through their teammates. Ron explained that, “even if you’re not, you know, a particular fan of a certain genre of music that’s playing on the loudspeaker, let’s say there’s a group of guys on the team that are, and they start rocking out to it. Now, okay, you can start rolling with it… It’s contagious.” Sam spoke to these factors for enhancing team performance, summarizing: When everyone’s kind of listening to the same song and you have like… a good vibe throughout the locker room it’s… it’s like everyone’s kind of bonding to the same thing. You’re kind of all going the same direction… the more people you can get going in the BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 19 same direction on the team, like kind of the better you’re gonna be in the end. Like whether you win or lose it’s one thing, but definitely it gives you a better chance to win. Music was not perceived by the participants as an advantage in and of itself, but rather a tool that could help to improve chances of winning through these strategies. Participants also identified music in the locker room as salient for the purpose of improving team chemistry, explaining that music helped to make it easier to interact with one another, allowed teammates to share their respective cultures, and provided insight into teammates’ personalities. Tom mentioned bonding with teammates by discussing music in the clubhouse, stating it, “has positive effects because everyone kind of talks about that music. Like, ‘Oh my gosh, this guy’s playing this again.’ Or like, ‘Oh, I love whenever he’s on the aux, he’s got some good music.’” Several participants specifically identified music in the clubhouse creating shared experiences that could serve as a bridge for players of different races, cultures, and nationalities to bond as a group. Lee stated the music, “made it easier to socialize with each other, especially… With the language barrier and that kind of thing. Um, just having something loud on in the background makes it a little bit easier to talk to each other, you know? Guys are dancing and that kind of thing, it makes it… more happy and, um, inviting environment I would say.” Ken also spoke this piece, summarizing: And I mean they a lot of [my Latino teammates] don’t understand English, a lot of the American players don’t understand Spanish. So, we kind of… came to an agreement this year, every Latino song we have to play an American song and it’s back and forth and back and forth… but also I think… that’s good for both sides and they’re kind of bringing BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 20 their culture onto us and we are kind of sharing some of ours with them. And at the end of the day, that doesn’t do nothing but help us grow as teammates I feel like. Another distinction participants learned through group music listening regarding the influence of culture was the different preferences between international Hispanic/Latino players and those from the United States. Hispanic and Latino players were identified as typically listening to more energetic, high-tempo music, and typically did so at a louder volume. Rather than selecting music to elicit certain emotions or energy/arousal levels, participants noted that music after the game was aimed at matching the mood of the team and “setting a tone” for the clubhouse. This selection was largely dependent on the team’s performance outcome. Eric described this factor, noting, “it’s really based on what you do out there on the field. Lose, low… you know, low music puts you in that mood of just saying, ‘We’ll get them next time’ kind of deal. Same thing goes for when you win, it’s just, ‘Alright, we won, we can do whatever we want basically, so let’s crank it up!’” Stadium Listening Selection and Routine. While on the field, participants described listening to music via the stadium’s sound system. Listening to music on the stadium’s sound system occurs during the players’ practices and warm-ups (e.g., batting practice) prior to the game, as well as throughout the game itself. The vast majority of this music is selected by the organization’s staff, with the exception of players’ walk-up/walk-out songs. The interviewees explained that, between innings, music is played throughout the stadium and is commonly tied with promotional material and advertisements, and a similar selection of songs are used by different stadiums and at all levels. Participants noted the routine nature of these playlists as stadiums will typically use the same songs at the same points throughout the game (e.g., “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” after the 7th BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 21 inning). Many of these songs then become associated with playing and watching baseball in stadiums, tend to be family-friendly, and are used as a way of making the game more enjoyable for fans. Ken spoke to this aspect of the experience, saying: I know in-between innings… they’ll usually play music kinda for the crowd. After, like… while the pitcher is throwing his seven or eight warm up pitches and the infield is taking grounders and stuff waiting for the other team to come hit, that is when you hear the stadium has just a just a fan playlist. And, um, it’s usually got some modern stuff, a lot of throwback, like a lot of 80’s and just baseball ballpark music. I feel like every stadium has that and I… have probably heard that around ball parks so much since I was a little kid… I feel like that is kind of a must at baseball games is to kind of have just these baseball songs, like just old-school stuff. That’s what I have always heard growing up around ball fields. While these songs are not chosen by the players, participants described being able to use the music for similar purposes as when listening by themselves and with their teams. Impact. Several participants explained that music helped them flow with the game of baseball and allocate their attention as needed. Ron summarized this piece of the experience, explaining: With baseball it’s a very… there’s a lot of lapses in action or rest I guess you could say. It’s a very, ‘run as fast as you can and then stop because now you have to wait for the next play to happen,’ you know what I mean? So… there is a lot of down time on the field as well… But while I’m waiting, why not listen to music? Right? Every song has a different beat, every song has a different chorus, whatever… It’s a great distraction to be able to focus in and then focus out. So, you get to kind of zone out with the music while BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 22 you’re waiting and then boom, once you’re round comes up, you’re focused in again. And we’re taught as baseball players to be able to have that ability to zone in and zone out. Because if you’re trying to focus 100% of the time when there’s 200+ pitches thrown per game, it’s impossible I mean we’re human beings, right? And we only have so long of an attention span. Some participants reiterated the potentially distracting impact of stadium music, though they largely described having momentary distractions when it did occur. As a team, the stadium music again created shared experiences among teammates. In discussing this experience with his teammates, Tom expressed that: We really liked… these like two Dua Lipa songs because they kept coming on between the innings for like this ad for like a casino or something and so… everybody just kind of vibes with it because we're like, “oh, that’s that song!” Like, we just kind of like it from that experience and stuff, you know? The participants mentioned that these songs heard repeatedly over the stadium, regardless of whether they matched with personal preferences, could help teammates bond with one another. Walk-Up/Walk-Out Songs. While players acknowledged that music being played in stadiums can be experienced in other sports as well, several mentioned the unique integration of walk-up/walk-out songs. Dan discussed the uniqueness and widespread use of walk-up songs, explaining that, “no other sport has like, ‘When I do this, play this.’ So… it’s just a different… thing that the sport of baseball has… Now, every team… it is like okay you do this, you get your jersey number, you get your uniform, and you say your walk-out.” As walk-up/walk-out songs are the only times that players are able to select the music being played in the stadium and are tied with an individual’s performance, participants described BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 23 the process of choosing a song as being hours-long and was different for position players and pitchers. Walk-up songs, used for hitters, are around 15-second clips of a song selected by an athlete to be played as they walk to the plate and thus occur multiple times in a game. Some individuals choose one song to be played for all of their at-bats, while others prefer to use a few rotating songs. Walk-out songs are typically longer (about 1 minute in length) and are chosen by relief pitchers to be played as they run onto the field and warm-up during the game. These songs are thus only played once per game. Participants expressed often being highly intentional and purposeful with the song and timing of the song to be played. Some players reported choosing a walk-up/walk-out song that would have a direct impact on them in hopes of enhancing performance. One such use was to elicit a desired emotion, as Lee stated that listening to his song, “Kind of gives [him] confidence. Kind of swagger on the mound that like [he] feel[s] comfortable and [he’s] in a good state.” Another reason was to use the song for regulating arousal. Ken, about hearing his walk-up song being played, stated, “I can feel my breathing getting slower, and I think that is the key to it, man. When you get in the box, can you slow your heart rate down.” Outside of performance, several players mentioned choosing a walk-up/walk-out song that represented who they are as a person or as a baseball player. Dan explained that, “If it’s someone’s walk-out, it’s a personal song that they chose, so, it represents them walking up to the plate,” while describing his own process of choosing a song in saying, “ I always pick something that hits close to home because it is like… just like, I don’t know, it is just the way it has been. It is like I have to pay my respect almost, but it is not that. I pay my respect to what made me who I am. So, I’m going to take it everywhere I go kind of thing.” Similarly, Ron described choosing his walk-up to be a tribute, saying, “in college, I had a Frank Sinatra song actually. And, um… it BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 24 was, it was I guess you could say it was a tribute to my dad and my family. Because they’re based out of Chicago and Frank Sinatra is a Chicago legend.” In addition to a self-focused selection, players also utilize their walk-up/walk-out songs to engage the crowd. Luis expressed the fans as the primary factor in his selection, stating, “every walk song I have chosen, I have chosen it for the crowd, it’s not for me. A lot of people do it to get the crowd going, not to get themselves going… I choose a song I like, then I tell myself is the crowd going to like it.” Some players did so with the ultimate goal of regulating their own energy/arousal, as Ron explained that, “with the audience being engaged, obviously that’s gonna have an effect on him. I mean if you have 500 people behind you engaged in what you’re about to do, if you as an individual can’t get engaged because of that then you should check your pulse for sure.” Other players used walk-up/walk-out songs as a way of connecting with the fan base. Luis expounded on this particular use with his walk-up song, saying: I got really good responses… by the crowd, uh, people actually like sent me [direct messages] and stuff like, ‘Hey, I love your walk-up song! It's so different! Like… actually that’s cool… I like being able to tweet, to go search me on Twitter or Instagram and be like, ‘Yo, I like your walk-up song.’ It’s pretty cool. One participant mentioned that the walk-up/walk-out song can serve as a way of giving fans insight into the type of music players listen to and their personalities. Participants depicted their walk-up/walk-out selection as a continuous process and explained reasons for changing music. A few examples were identified by participants in which a player keeps their specific song and it becomes strongly associated with him (e.g., Mariano Rivera), however most players change their song yearly. Another common reason for changing songs was due to performance. Dan summarized this reasoning: BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 25 That is one of the first things. ‘Oh man, I went 0-4 today with four strike outs, gotta change my walk-up.’ Like it is just something… baseball is also very superstitious [sic] in that aspect. So, it is like… So that’s going to be the first thing you change. It is a routine; you’ve got to change a routine. If you keep making the same mistake, you’ve got to change the routine, change the path you are taking. While this change typically occurred between games, some participants cited changes even occurring in-game. A final reason for changing walk-up songs was feedback, usually negative, from teammates. As explained by Ken, “some guys just don’t like to catch slaps from other teammates like, ‘Man, that song. Why you listening to that? What is that? How does that hype you up?’ Some people just can't take it and… they’ll change it. They want to find a song they think is pleasing everyone.” Though participants reported multiple reasons for choosing music to listen to, players often make interpretations of others’ selections of walk-up/walk-out songs. Players explained a perception that the music chosen by others can provide insight into their teammates, as well as their competitors. To this point, Tom stated, “And it’s kind of funny to see like further into people based on what they do for that, it’s… it’s pretty neat to hear other, different tastes and what they feel like is a good walk-up song, or if it’s actually just a song that they like. It’s kind of funny to see.” Ken expressed how he interprets opposing players’ walk-up songs, saying, “when I’m catching, I’ll listen to a walk-up song and… it is a little game I’ll play with myself when I’m back behind the plate. Probably look at the scoreboard and listen to the song and be like, ‘I wonder where this guy is from?’ And a lot of time it’ll fool me… but it is so cool how BASEBALL MUSIC INTEGRATION 26 like it doesn’t it doesn’t matter I guess where you’re from if like there’s a lot of different people, which is really cool.” Discussion The current study was designed to explore baseball players’ experience with selecting and using music, as well as their perceptions of the impact of music on gameday. Conducting phenomenological interviews with professional baseball players allowed the researchers to investigate the thoughts about, feelings toward, and motivations for music listening at both the individual and team levels across performance as experienced by the players. The authors compared findings from the present study with current theories on music use for psychological preparation, emotion regulation in sport, and other theories used in applied sport psychology, with participant descriptions helping to both support and extend the literature. For example, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no studies to date have explored the use of music at the differing levels (i.e., individual, team, stadium) and at different stages throughout a gameday (e.g., pre-game, during game, post-game). Music Selection and Use At all levels and stages, music selection was a process, music was part of the gameday routine, songs were selected for intended purposes, and listening had perceived effects. While sharing these themes across levels, each level of listening altered the ways in which music was used and experienced in unique ways. Individual listening took place throughout the day before and after games and happened in the individual’s car or via headphones. Descriptions of participants’ individual music listening before games supported previous findings (Gabana et al., 2019) and proposed theories (Bishop et al., 2007) on the selecti