Tuesday, 29 July 2025

Drum Psych 101

When I entered university many years ago, I’d become interested in studying the invisible forces that drive human behaviour. And so I majored in psychology (with a minor in philosophy). Along the way I picked up a few principles that we musicians should be aware of.

Operant Conditioning
This principle applies everywhere. Any behaviour that is rewarded is more likely to be repeated. It's how learning works. If you play it right and your teacher praises you, you’ll be happy to play it some more.

Successive Approximation
Most learning happens through baby steps: trial and error. Even when we know exactly what to do, we still must go through the process of trying and failing and trying again. As we rack up more tries, we make fewer errors and so we gradually baby-step our way to the final product.

Proactive Inhibition
We're inclined to automatically do the things we’ve been doing. But to do something different, you may have to first ‘un-train’ the muscles and brain so they can give up what seems so natural and embrace the new. The goal is to set aside the old mindset and imprint a new one,  to convince the brain that it’s OK to let go of the other way.

Dunning-Kruger
This one is rather disturbing. Psychologists Dunning and Kruger (see below) studied test subjects' performance and their perception of how well they had performed. The researchers came to the conclusion that the less capable or competent the respondent, the less able they were to judge their own ability. In other words, people who are less skilled really do tend to think they’re better than they actually are because they don't have sufficient skill or knowledge to accurately assess their level of competence. Solution? Learn more, get better.

Leave It In The Dressing Room
Your mind is often mulling over something that's in your future. It’s called the Reach Back Effect and it happens unconsciously. You can adopt a clear mind-set and focus on the here and now rather than be distracted by upcoming events or other concerns.

Superstitious Behaviour
We humans like superstitions. We even seem to be programmed to manufacture them. If we observe two things happening together, we're inclined to think that they’re related. The more it happens, or seems to happen, the more convinced we become that there is a relationship. No behaviour is immune, as lucky socks owners around the globe will tell you. That said, superstitions beget rituals, and rituals can be beneficial ... as long as you don’t buy into the hype.

Audience Effect
It's great to have an audience. Cheering fans can inspire you to raise your game. But this can also set you back a little. When we have an audience, our performance does in fact improve. That's good. But this only applies to our most ingrained moves. The stuff we've been working on recently may not stand a chance. So you’ll play better, but your playing might not include your latest achievements.

The Hawthorne Effect
Similar to the Audience Effect, this is the tendency to behave differently when someone is watching. The result can be for the better or worse. If you’ve ever played to a room full of drummers, you know what I mean.

Depression
There are two types of depression. Clinical depression is systemic and usually a lifelong condition. Episodic depression is a normal reaction to trauma. The death of someone close or the break-up of a relationship can push someone into a depressed state. It resembles clinical depression except that it's easier to treat and is, thankfully, self limiting. However, what to do in the mean time? Many people like to channel their mood into their music. Note the popularity of drum circles for stress relief. Playing music floods your body with endorphins and can get you away from your current doldrums.

With all these things potentially working against us, taking care of our mental health should be a priority. Knowing what can affect us -- and how -- gives us a means to avoid, or at least cope with, some of the dangers.

More on Dunning-Kruger:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/basics/dunning-kruger-effect


Photo credit: © Agsandrew | Dreamstime.com

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Drum Psych 101

When I entered university many years ago, I’d become interested in studying the invisible forces that drive human behaviour. And so I major...