Beyond Nervousness

Talk/Poster Presentation & Discussion

Beyond Nervousness: Towards an Integrative, Holistic Understanding of Performance Anxiety through Schema Mode Models – Three Case Studies

Abstract:

Music performance anxiety (MPA) is among the most common psychological challenges faced by professional musicians. While most interventions target acute self-regulation before or during performance, schema-focused coaching (Wenhart, 2023, after Young, 2003) offers a broader, integrative framework that addresses the underlying personality structures and emotional needs shaping individual reactions to stage stress. It distinguishes between maladaptive backstage modes (Child Modes, "Emotions"; and Internalized Parent Modes, "Inner Critics") and frontstage modes (Coping Modes and Compensatory Strategies, "Protectors"), as well as the adaptive Competent Adult Mode ("Inner Conductor"). Shaped by early adaptive and maladaptive experiences (e.g., adverse childhood events) and biographical events during childhood, youth, and early adulthood, these modes govern how musicians relate to themselves, their colleagues, teachers, peers, and audiences.

This poster presents three case studies of…