Abstract
This study aimed to examine the effect of Turkish Music, which is played in the background in preschool education environments, on the intrinsic motivation levels of children in the preschool period. The study used a “quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design with retention test”, one of the quantitative research models. The study group of the study consists of 21 children aged 48–72 months, who were selected by purposive sampling method, attending the kindergartens of primary schools affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in the city center of Tokat, Türkiye. The “Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18)” was employed as a data collection tool to measure the motivation levels of children. In the study, while routine training activities were applied in the experimental group, Turkish Music pieces selected in accordance with each activity were played in the background. In the experimental group, background Turkish Music was played five days a week for four weeks. In the control group, the teacher practiced only daily activities. The study found a significant difference between the control and experimental group post-tests in favor of the experimental group. The study contributed to the literature as the first study to reveal that Turkish Music, which is played in the background during activities in preschool educational environments, makes a significant contribution to the intrinsic motivation levels of children.
Introduction
Music gives a soul to the universe, Wings to the mind, Flight to the imagination…
And life to everything.
-Plato
Throughout history, music has played a significant role in human life. Since the first humans, from music made by striking animal bones against each other to music performed with today's high-tech instruments, people have always lived in harmony with music and have never given up on it. Music gives pleasure, makes happy, and brings enthusiasm but on the other hand, it also gains importance as a means of people's self-expression. Music nourishes the soul and helps people feel good about themselves and thus is good for their psychological disorders. The reason for this effect of music is that music affects the depths of the soul with harmony and rhythm and has a feature that nourishes the soul (Flohr, Miller, & DeBeus, 2000; Polat, 2018; Yehuda, 2011; Yıldırım, 2021).
According to Plato (428-347 BC), “Music is an excellent educational art that virtuously enters the human psyche through sounds (Alaner, 2007). Musical education was given great importance in ancient Greek, and the importance and place of music in education have always remained active, including in Pythagoras, whom Iamblichos called” the creator of the entire state educational system. “Music was an inseparable part of the lives of students studying at the school of Pythagoras (570-495), while music-related activities in education were organized by Pythagoras. Pythagoras accepted music as one of the principles of education and also made experimental studies in music-related education. For example, it has been recorded that students use music to relieve the tiredness of the day, to fall asleep calmly and comfortably, and to relieve drowsiness when they wake up. It has been seen that Pythagoras calmed a young person by using music and also asked the flutist next to him to play a spondee-tuned melody for the young people who could not gather their minds due to drunkenness and could not speak with reason and logic and the young people listening to the melody sobered up, gathered their minds, and managed to focus on the present moment (Babayeva Apaaydın & Arslan, 2015). İbn-i Sina (Avicenna) (980–1037), who was influenced by the ancient Greek philosophers and Farabi (872–950) in his thoughts on music, consider music as a source of healing and relieving the fatigue of the lessons by listening to music (Aktaş, 2009). He also wrote works on music and stated that people would be treated using music; He argued that “sounds arranged in a certain way, in a harmonious order, have very deep effects on the human soul” (Öztekin, 2020). Ibn-i Sina stated that some tunes would have an effect on the human soul at different times of the day and made evaluations about the effect of music on the human soul through the eyes of a psychologist (Aktaş, 2009).
Luther (1483–1546) expressed his thoughts on music as follows: “Music makes people more docile, kinder, more honest, more accurate, and intelligent”. Nietzsche (1844–1900), on the other hand, repeats the views of the ancient Greek philosophers that music not only affects the general direction of development but also affects the circuits of the human brain with the words “music has the power to inculcate the mind” (Alaner, 2007). In the first decade of life, children have twice as much neural activity and connections in their brains as adults (Flohr et al., 2000). When music is playing in the background while a child is busy with an activity, both sides of the brain are activated at the same time. This improves brain function and supports focus and concentration. Thus, the use of music in educational settings increases children's motivation, helping them to be willing to learn and study, be productive, and stay engaged (Barnes, 2020; Davies, 2000; Gruhn, 2005; Stegemiller, 2012; White, 2007). Sacks (2007) argues that music has a special relationship with memory, that music embeds and activates sequences of knowledge and action. Similarly, Hallam, Price, and Katsarou (2002) found that calming music led to better performance over arithmetic performance and memory tasks. These findings confirm that when music is involved in a child's development, the amount of connections between multiple locations of the brain increases, while at the same time bringing the brain into a “relaxed or resting state” (Flohr et al., 2000).
Music doesn't just encourage passive learning in children but also motivates them to be attentive, caring, and productive (White, 2007). The significant effect of music on reducing stress and improving cognitive function is noteworthy (Barnes, 2020). The emotional power of music can be used to help children explore their emotions and channel them into expressive actions. Music can increase or decrease energy levels in the classroom (Davies, 2000). For these reasons, music is recommended in early childhood classrooms to regulate children's behavior and provide motivation to learn (Love, 2007). Regulation of behaviors in learning environments increases intrinsic motivation. Özbey and Aktemur Gürler (2019) found that as intrinsic motivation increased in children, their behaviors involving social skills increased and their problematic behaviors decreased. In their studies, Özbey (2018a, 2018b) found that there is a positive relationship between the intrinsic motivation levels of preschool children and their self-regulation skills and moral value behaviors. Developing positive behaviors, reducing problematic behaviors and increasing self-regulation skills increase intrinsic motivation, ensure effective learning in educational environments, and make a significant contribution to the quality of education. Therefore, when both the results of these studies and the information and findings in the literature are evaluated together, the importance of improving intrinsic motivation in increasing the quality of education by regulating behaviors emerges.
Motivation is a concept used to describe the processes that activate, direct, maintain the human organism, behavior, and energy, and affect future behavior (Öztürk, 2020). Motivation is often expressed as an intrinsic state that awakens, directs, and sustains behavior (Woolfolk Hoy, 2015). Berhenke (2013) defines intrinsic motivation as “the psychological force that awakens independent initiative to solve a problem, to be able to overcome a difficult task with persistence and focus” or “the process of activities carried out to accomplish a task”. When the definitions of motivation are examined, the positive effect of intrinsic motivation in learning environments is not open to debate. Although the child can be motivated by both internal and external stimuli, children with improved intrinsic motivation are more likely to learn. Children with improved intrinsic motivation are more successful at concentrating on learning tasks, increasing their efforts toward their goals, and solving problems. Developing intrinsic motivation increases efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity, and strengthens the likelihood of achieving the targeted results (Forsyth, 2006; Özbey & Aktemur, 2019). The development of mental functions is essential in raising individuals who can think correctly and logically. Individuals who have not developed correct and logical thinking skills are deprived of skills such as acquiring a goal necessary for internal motivation and starting to work for this purpose, taking responsibility for the work they have started and finishing it, developing a sense of self-efficacy and confidence that they can reach their goals, showing patience in the difficulties they encounter while working towards the goal, and perseverance in reaching the goal (Özbey, 2023). Background music is one of the commonly used strategies to support and improve children's learning. Using music in the background of education or during independent work hours has been proven to have many benefits related to productivity, behavior, and motivation in the classroom (McGovern, 2000; White, 2007).
Scientific studies have shown that music can improve an individual's performance, learning, and emotional states, and increase motivation. Especially in the studies conducted on the effect of classical music in the last century, preschool children are also present in the sample group and it has been shown that the classical music used in the studies makes a positive contribution to social and emotional development, especially to the development of focus and intelligence (Uluğbay, 2013).
In this study, the effect of background Turkish music on the motivation levels of preschool children was examined. It is known that Turks have been interested in music since ancient times and use it as a means of consolation, joy, and healing (Yener, 2014). Turkish music attracts attention due to its birth, development, impact on world culture and art, and therapeutic feature. During and after the Ottoman period, traces of Turkish music are observed in wide geography, especially in Anatolian, Rumelian, and Arab countries (Güvenç, 2014a). Knowing the importance of music therapy on human psychology, the ancient Turkish physicians recommended that the children of the emperors be put to sleep with music in the cradle. The practice of putting children to sleep with music in the cradle draws attention as proof of the brilliant period of Turkish child psychiatry in the 16th century (Güvenç, 2014b). Turkish music, both in terms of its expressive power and opportunity, as well as it's characteristic in the melody sequence and its active rhythm ability, continues its power and benefit now as it was in the past in Turkish history (Güvenç, 1985, 2014b).
Although the strong effect of Turkish music has been proven in the past, there is no study on its contribution to the psychological and social-emotional development of preschool children. Therefore, in terms of being the first study to examine the effect of background Turkish music on the intrinsic motivation levels of children in the preschool period and revealing the effect of Turkish Music used for therapeutic purposes in healing houses in the historical process, this study is significant. It is considered that the study will offer an alternative method in social and emotional program development studies for early childhood.
Research question
The research question of the study is: What is the effect of background Turkish music on developing and supporting the intrinsic motivation of preschool children?
Method
Research model
In this study, which was conducted to examine the effect of background Turkish music on the development and support of intrinsic motivation in the preschool period, a “quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design with retention test”, one of the quantitative research models, was used. In this model, there are two groups formed by unbiased assignment.
One of them is the experimental group and the other is the control group. Measurements are made before and after the implementation under equal conditions for both groups. In the implementation process, the experimental procedure, the effect of which is tested, is given to the experimental group, but not to the control group. Finally, the measurements of the subjects in the groups are obtained again using the same measuring tool. To see the effect of the experimental design, the measurement results of the dependent variable of the experimental and control groups are compared using appropriate techniques (Büyüköztürk, Çakmak, Akgün, Karadeniz, & Demirel, 2017).
Universe and sample
The study group of the study consists of 21 children aged 48–72 months who attend the kindergartens of primary schools affiliated to the Ministry of National Education selected by purposeful sampling method in Tokat city center in Türkiye in the spring semester of the 2021–2022 academic year. Purposive sampling is a sampling design that enables in-depth research to be conducted by way of selecting information-rich situations depending on the purpose of the study (Büyüköztürk et al., 2017; Yıldırım & Şimsek, 2011) whereby the selection of individuals or units is carefully made by the researcher (Gliner, Morgan, & Leech, 2015). Eight of the children participating in the study were included in the experimental group and 13 were included in the control group. First, three groups were pre-tested and 2 groups with motivation scores close to each other were selected as the sample of the study.
Data collection tools
In the study, the “Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18)” was used to measure children's social skill levels.
“The Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18)” was developed in 1993 by Morgan, Maslin-Cole, Harmon, Busch-Rossnagel, Jennings, HauserCram and Brockman as DMQ17. It was revised by Jozsa and Morgan in 2015 and finalized as DMQ18. The scale has been revised for infants, preschool children, and school-age children. Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) consists of 7 sub-scales and 39 items: Social Persistence with Peers Scale, Cognitive Persistence Scale, Social Persistence with Adults Scale, Gross Motor Persistence Scale, Negative Reactions Scale, Mastery Pleasure Scale, and General Competence. The 5-point Likert-type scale is filled in on behalf of the children by their teachers. As the scores obtained from the scale increase, the motivation levels increase. The Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) was adapted into Turkish by Özbey and Dağlıoğlu (2017). Six linguists examined the linguistic validity of the scale. After the scale was translated from English to Turkish, it was translated again from Turkish to English, and its consistency with the original form was examined. The results revealed the consistency between the items in the translation and those in the original form. After the scale items have been tested for scope, clarity, and cultural relevance, the measurement tool has been finalized. The 7-factor structure of the scale was confirmed by confirmatory factor analysis. The loading values of the substances in the factors vary between 0.51 and 0.94. The total variance explained by the factors is 0.71. Alpha reliability coefficients of the scale range from 0.84 to 0.91, and Sperman Brown split halves test reliability coefficients range from 0.77 to 0.90. The test-retest reliability of the scale is 0.85 (Özbey & Dağlıoğlu, 2017). The validity and reliability study of the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children was conducted by Özbey (2018b) again in Ankara sample with 36–72 months old children (n = 401) attending preschool education institutions. The 7-factor structure of the scale was confirmed by confirmatory factor analysis. Alpha reliability coefficients of the scale were found to be 0.91 for the Cognitive Persistence sub-dimension, 0.88 for the Gross Motor Persistence sub-dimension, 0.90 for the Social Persistence with Adults sub-dimension, 0.87 for the Social Persistence with Peers sub-dimension, 0.87 for the Mastery Pleasure sub-dimension, 0.81 for the Negative Reactions sub-dimension, and 0.93 for the General Competence sub-dimension.
Selection of Turkish Music Pieces and implementation process
Selection of Turkish Music Pieces
Firstly, by taking the expert opinion of three faculty members working in the field of Turkish music, many pieces were listened to by the researchers, and 68 Turkish music pieces were determined. In the second stage, with three teachers and one faculty member in the field of preschool education, it was determined in which activities these pieces would be used and the number of pieces was reduced to 36. In the last stage, the expert opinions of a total of nine faculty members, four of whom work in the field of preschool education and five of whom work in the field of Turkish music, were consulted on whether it was appropriate to use these 36 pieces in the selected activity categories. A total of 32 instrumental pieces were determined in 8 categories: start the day time (2 pieces), playtime in learning centers (4 pieces), gathering/cleaning time (1 piece), art activity (8 pieces), game activity (6 pieces), drama/dance activity (5 pieces), rest-activity (5 pieces), and going home time (1 piece). After the musical pieces were determined, pre-tests were administered to the groups and the implementation process was started.
Experimental Implementation Process: While the teacher of the experimental group implemented the routine activities (art, games, etc.) planned by her during the day, she also played Turkish music pieces to the children in the background. The control group teacher, on the other hand, only practiced routine activities planned by herself and did not use music. In the experimental group, background Turkish music was played five days a week for four weeks. Examples of Turkish music that can be used in a one-day training flow are given below:
| Activity Name | Turkish Music Piece/Composer Name/Youtube Link | Application |
| Day-start time | Beyoğlunda gezersin - Neyzen Rıza Bey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTWqs1YS0KY | When the children started to come to the classroom, the piece in the link was played. |
| Centers/game time | Nihâvend Saz Semâî - Reşat Aysu https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cDF4hJIM7c | While the children were playing in learning centers, the piece in the link was played. |
| Gathering/cleaning | Kürdilihicazkar Longa - Kemani Sebuh https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS-C2GnVu-c | Before breakfast, the piece in the link was played and the class was gathered. |
| Art activity | Fikrimin ince gülü - İsmail Hakkı Bey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuR-ukXgpZw | The piece in the link was played to increase the focus while the art activity was held at the table. |
| Game activity | Hicaz Mandıra - Sultan Abdülaziz https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXAOOE87Jfg | While playing games, the piece in the link that will increase enthusiasm and joy has been played. |
| Dance/drama activity | Katibim Üsküdar – Anonymous https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AVFJHpHClA | While performing the dance/drama activities, the piece in the link that will enable the body to be used more effectively has been played. |
| Rest time | Mâhûr Saz Semâî - Refik Talat Alpman https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O7CuZlVnc0 | When the children are tired, the piece in the link that will facilitate the transition to the next activity has listened on the mat. |
| Time to go home | Telgrafın Tellerine – Anonymous https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TMbMJST1Dw | When the children began to put on their clothes, the piece in the link was played to bring them joyfully to their families. |
Not all of the music included in the one-day education flow from the children's arrival to school to their homecoming was played one after the other. In the routine activities planned by the experimental group teacher on that day, music was listened to in the background for an average of 30 min per day in accordance with the activity transitions. Background music was not used in activities where instructions, activities and speech were intense, such as science, mathematics, and language activities.
After the program was implemented, the post-tests were administered to the groups and persistence tests were administered three weeks later.
Data analysis
In the study, since the number of samples was less than 30 people, non-parametric tests were used for the analysis (Büyüköztürk, 2020). Mann Whitney U-Test was used to compare the pretest and post-test scores of the experimental and control groups, and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to compare the pretest and post-test scores of each group.
Findings
This section presents the analysis results for the experimental and control groups.
Experimental and control groups pre-test comparison
Table 1 shows the Mann-Whitney U Test results regarding the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) pre-test scores of the experimental and control groups.
Mann-Whitney U test for pre-tests of the experimental and control group
| Pre-Test | Groups | n | Rank Mean | Rank Total | U | p |
| Cognitive Persistence | Experiment | 8 | 6.38 | 51.00 | 15.00 | 0.007* |
| Control | 13 | 13.85 | 180.00 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Gross Motor Persistence | Experiment | 8 | 13.00 | 104.00 | 36.00 | 0.240 |
| Control | 13 | 9.77 | 127.00 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Adults | Experiment | 8 | 11.94 | 95.50 | 44.50 | 0.583 |
| Control | 13 | 10.42 | 135.50 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Peers | Experiment | 8 | 9.06 | 72.50 | 36.50 | 0.258 |
| Control | 13 | 12.19 | 158.50 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Mastery Pleasure | Experiment | 8 | 15.13 | 121.00 | 19.00 | 0.010* |
| Control | 13 | 8.46 | 110.00 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Negative Reactions | Experiment | 8 | 10.94 | 87.50 | 51.50 | 0.971 |
| Control | 13 | 11.04 | 143.50 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| General Competence | Experiment | 8 | 11.94 | 95.50 | 44.50 | 0.586 |
| Control | 13 | 10.42 | 135.50 | |||
| Total | 21 |
*p < 0.05
As can be seen in Table 1, it was determined that there was a significant difference between the scores of the experimental and control groups in the pre-tests in favor of the control group in the Cognitive Persistence (U = 15.00, p < 0.05) sub-dimension, and in favor of the experimental group in the Mastery Pleasure (U = 19.00, p < 0.05) sub-dimension, while there was no significant difference between the groups in other sub-dimensions. This shows that the experimental and control groups were in equal conditions at the beginning of the study.
Experimental and control groups post-test comparison
Table 2 shows the Mann-Whitney U Test results regarding the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) post-test scores of the experimental and control groups.
Mann-Whitney U test for post-tests of the experimental and control group
| Post-Test | Groups | n | Rank Mean | Rank Total | U | p |
| Cognitive Persistence | Experiment | 8 | 13.38 | 107.00 | 33.00 | 0.159 |
| Control | 13 | 9.54 | 124.00 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Gross Motor Persistence | Experiment | 8 | 16.13 | 129.00 | 11.00 | 0.002* |
| Control | 13 | 7.85 | 102.00 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Adults | Experiment | 8 | 14.56 | 116.50 | 23.50 | 0.038* |
| Control | 13 | 8.81 | 114.50 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Peers | Experiment | 8 | 15.81 | 126.50 | 13.50 | 0.005* |
| Control | 13 | 8.04 | 104.50 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Mastery Pleasure | Experiment | 8 | 17.50 | 140.00 | 0.000 | 0.000* |
| Control | 13 | 7.00 | 91.00 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| Negative Reactions | Experiment | 8 | 4.81 | 38.50 | 2.50 | 0.000* |
| Control | 13 | 14.81 | 192.50 | |||
| Total | 21 | |||||
| General Competence | Experiment | 8 | 16.13 | 129.00 | 11.00 | 0.003* |
| Control | 13 | 7.85 | 102.00 | |||
| Total | 21 |
*p < 0.05
As can be seen in Table 2, it was determined that there was a significant difference in favor of the experimental group in all sub-dimensions, except for the Cognitive Persistence sub-dimension, between the scores obtained from the Cognitive Persistence (U = 33.00, p > 0.05), Gross Motor Persistence (U = 11.00, p < 0.05), Social Persistence with Adults (U = 23.50, p < 0.05), Social Persistence with Peers (U = 13.50, p < 0.05), Mastery Pleasure (U = 0.000, p < 0.05), Negative Reactions (U = 2.50, p < 0.05), and General Competence (U = 11.50, p < 0.05) sub-dimensions in the post-tests of the experimental and control groups.
Experimental group pre-test / post-test comparison
Table 3 shows the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test results regarding the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) pre-test post-test scores of the experimental group.
Wilcoxon signed-rank test for pre-test and post-test of the experimental group
| Experimental Group Pre-Test Post-Test | n | Rank Mean | Rank Total | Z | p | |
| Cognitive Persistence | Negative Ranks | 1 | 1.00 | 1.00 | −2.380 | 0.017* |
| Positive Ranks | 7 | 5.00 | 35.00 | |||
| Equal | 0 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Gross Motor Persistence | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | −2.207 | 0.027* |
| Positive Ranks | 6 | 3.50 | 21.00 | |||
| Equal | 2 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Adults | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | −2.527 | 0.012* |
| Positive Ranks | 8 | 4.50 | 36.00 | |||
| Equal | 0 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Peers | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | −2.555 | 0.011* |
| Positive Ranks | 8 | 4.50 | 36.00 | |||
| Equal | 0 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Mastery Pleasure | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | −2.226 | 0.026* |
| Positive Ranks | 6 | 3.50 | 21.00 | |||
| Equal | 2 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Negative Reactions | Negative Ranks | 8 | 4.50 | 36.00 | −2.530 | 0.011* |
| Positive Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | |||
| Equal | 0 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| General Competence | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | −2.379 | 0.017* |
| Positive Ranks | 7 | 4.00 | 28.00 | |||
| Equal | 1 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
*p < 0.05
As can be seen in Table 3, it was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) Cognitive Persistence (z = −2.380, p < 0.05), Gross Motor Persistence (z = −2.207, p < 0.05), Social Persistence with Adults (z = −2.527, p < 0.05), Social Persistence with Peers (z = −2.555, p < 0.05), Mastery Pleasure (z = −2.226, p < 0.05), Negative Reactions (z = −2.530, p < 0.05), and General Competence (z = −2.379, p < 0.05) sub-dimension pre-test post-test scores of the experimental group.
Control group pre-test / post-test comparison
Table 4 shows the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test results regarding the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) pre-test post-test scores of the control group.
Wilcoxon signed-rank test for pre-test and post-test of the control group
| Control Group Pre-Test Post-Test | n | Rank Mean | Rank Total | Z | p | |
| Cognitive Persistence | Negative Ranks | 4 | 5.00 | 20.00 | −0.312 | 0.755 |
| Positive Ranks | 5 | 5.00 | 25.00 | |||
| Equal | 4 | |||||
| Total | 13 | |||||
| Gross Motor Persistence | Negative Ranks | 1 | 9.00 | 9.00 | −2.195 | 0.028* |
| Positive Ranks | 10 | 5.70 | 57.00 | |||
| Equal | 2 | |||||
| Total | 13 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Adults | Negative Ranks | 4 | 4.00 | 16.00 | −2.078 | 0.038* |
| Positive Ranks | 9 | 8.33 | 75.00 | |||
| Equal | 0 | |||||
| Total | 13 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Peers | Negative Ranks | 3 | 6.83 | 20.50 | −1.144 | 0.253 |
| Positive Ranks | 8 | 5.69 | 45.50 | |||
| Equal | 2 | |||||
| Total | 13 | |||||
| Mastery Pleasure | Negative Ranks | 1 | 1.50 | 1.50 | −0.816 | 0.414 |
| Positive Ranks | 2 | 2.25 | 4.50 | |||
| Equal | 10 | |||||
| Total | 13 | |||||
| Negative Reactions | Negative Ranks | 3 | 4.33 | 13.00 | −2.285 | 0.022* |
| Positive Ranks | 10 | 7.80 | 78.00 | |||
| Equal | 0 | |||||
| Total | 13 | |||||
| General Competence | Negative Ranks | 10 | 5.50 | 55.00 | −2.814 | 0.005* |
| Positive Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | |||
| Equal | 3 | |||||
| Total | 13 | |||||
*p < 0.05
As can be seen in Table 4, It was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the pre-post test scores of the control group in the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) Gross Motor Persistence (z = −2.195, p < 0.05), Social Persistence with Adults (z = −2.078, p < 0.05), Negative Reactions (z = −2.285, p < 0.05), and General Competence (z = −2.814, p < 0.05) sub-dimensions. It was determined that the difference was in favor of negative ranks, that is, in favor of the pre-test in the “General Competence” sub-dimension, and positive ranks in the other sub-dimensions, that is, in favor of the post-tests, while the scores of the “General Competence” sub-dimension of the Control Group decreased and the scores of the other sub-dimensions increased.
Experimental group post-test and retention test comparison
Table 5 shows the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test results regarding the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) post-test and retention test scores of the experimental group.
Wilcoxon signed-rank test for post-test and retention test of the experimental group
| Experimental Group Post-Test - Retention Test | n | Rank Mean | Rank Total | Z | p | |
| Cognitive Persistence | Negative Ranks | 2 | 1.50 | 3.00 | 0.000 | 1.000 |
| Positive Ranks | 1 | 3.00 | 3.00 | |||
| Equal | 5 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Gross Motor Persistence | Negative Ranks | 1 | 1.00 | 1.00 | −1.000 | 0.317 |
| Positive Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | |||
| Equal | 7 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Adults | Negative Ranks | 3 | 3.50 | 10.50 | 0.000 | 1.000 |
| Positive Ranks | 3 | 3.50 | 10.50 | |||
| Equal | 2 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Social Persistence with Peers | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 1.000 |
| Positive Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | |||
| Equal | 8 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Mastery Pleasure | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 1.000 |
| Positive Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | |||
| Equal | 8 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| Negative Reactions | Negative Ranks | 2 | 5.00 | 10.00 | −0.702 | 0.483 |
| Positive Ranks | 5 | 3.60 | 18.00 | |||
| Equal | 1 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
| General Competence | Negative Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.000 | 1.000 |
| Positive Ranks | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | |||
| Equal | 8 | |||||
| Total | 8 | |||||
As can be seen in Table 5, it was determined that there wasn't a statistically significant difference between the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) Cognitive Persistence (z = −0.000, p > 0.05), Gross Motor Persistence (z = −1.000, p > 0.05), Social Persistence with Adults (z = −0.000, p > 0.05), Social Persistence with Peers (z = −0.000, p > 0.05), Mastery Pleasure (z = −0.000, p > 0.05), Negative Reactions (z = −0.702, p > 0.05), and General Competence (z = −0.000, p > 0.05) sub-dimension post-test and retention-test scores of the experimental group. This shows that Turkish music has a lasting effect on motivation.
Discussion
This study aimed to reveal the effect of background Turkish music on the intrinsic motivation levels of preschool children. As a result of the study, it was determined that the scores obtained from all subscales of the motivation scale differed significantly in favor of the experimental group. In the measurements within the control group, an increase in the motivation scale was observed in some dimensions with the effect of the routine training program. This result shows that preschool education programs support motivational behaviors in children, and this effect is much higher when background Turkish music is added to education programs. In other words, teachers can increase the effectiveness of educational programs by using background Turkish music in their daily training programs and make a significant contribution to children's motivation levels.
Previous studies also draw attention to the contribution of using music in educational settings to children. Blasco-Magraner, Bernabe-Valero, Marín-Liébana, and Moret-Tatay (2021), in their review study in which they identified the beneficial effects of music on emotional intelligence, academic performance, and prosocial skills, concluded that music should be used in school environments not only as a significant lesson in itself but also as an educational tool in other lessons in school environments. Baylarova-Alakbarova (2022) found that music-enriched education is associated with learning motivations in adolescents, Seewagen (2019) found that music used in the classroom increases students' participation and motivation in class, while Mohan and Thomas (2020) found that a strong positive effect is achieved on task performance when background music is available. Chew and Chang (2022) found that in an environment with background music, children achieved higher scores in Origami task performance, completed more steps, and showed more focus and attention. Koolidge and Holmes (2018) revealed that children who heard instrumental music completed more puzzle pieces than children in the group that heard music with lyrics or no music. Tan (2004) found that children who listened to background music had a significant improvement in sleep quality over time, while Field (1999) found that children who listened to classical music had a shorter transition time to sleep. White (2007) found that using background music is very effective, music motivates children to learn more by increasing motivation, and more positive behaviors are observed in children. In their study with preschool children, Cömert and Özbey (2021) found that background Turkish music increased the effect of the psychological resilience program applied to children. Love (2007) found that when background music was played, children played longer games; Lawrence (2001) found that children are more attentive and quieter during study time; Stegemiller (2013) has shown that it makes children feel better and positively affects academic development. Ivanov and Geake (2003) found that the group in which Mozart and Bach's music was played gave better results than the group in which no music was played in the temporal-spatial reasoning test. Strachan (2015) found that when background music was used, children smiled, talked, and were more productive. Given that smiling is a sign of pleasure or happiness, Strachan (2015)'s study confirms that music elevates a person's mood. Similarly, the observations made while applying background Turkish music in this study also show that music has positive effects on children. Researchers have observed that with music, children's attention span increases, their focus becomes easier, their speech rate decreases, they finish the assigned task in a shorter time, and work more pleasantly and happily. These studies confirm the notion that when music is included in a child's development, the amount of connections between multiple brain locations increases, while also bringing the brain into a “relaxed or resting state.”
Conclusion
This study provides the first data that reveals that motivation can be supported by the background Turkish music in the preschool period. It has been seen that background Turkish music contributes positively to the motivation levels of children. In terms of spiritual treatment, music provides psychological relaxation by taking away negative energy and evoking positive emotions in people. This emotion can help them learn. If a child's emotional state is good, they are more likely to study efficiently. Therefore, music supports intrinsic motivation and allows the child to enjoy what s/he is doing. It motivates children by increasing their attention and motivation periods. Children who control their emotions are better able to focus on the given task, show perseverance, improve problem-solving skills, and study longer on activities. This positive emotional state can be influenced by the type of music played in class. Children work more effectively when they reach a better emotional state through music. Study findings show that background music in the classroom has a positive impact on the entire classroom, not just on a single child. It is considered that this study will shed light on future studies, as a study that allows the emergence of understandings and perceptions about program implementations that allow preschool children to develop motivation.
This study which was conducted to determine the contribution of the background Turkish music to motivation levels of children is; limited to 21 children aged 48–72 months attending kindergartens of primary schools in Tokat city center. Limited to 32 Turkish music pieces played in the background during the teacher's daily educational activities in the classroom environment. Limited to the data acquired from the pretest-posttest and permanence tests through a four-week experimental period in which quantitative data collection tools were used. Limited to the quantitative data acquired from the Motivation Scale for Preschool Children (DMQ18) which was completed by measuring children's motivation levels in the classroom environment based on the teacher's observations. In line with the limitations and findings of the study, it is possible to recommend that;
Effect of the background Turkish music as educational support in education programs carried out with preschool interdisciplinary studies and posttraumatic therapy programs can be examined. Long-term effects of the background Turkish music in different age groups during preschool period and school type variable can be examined with longitudinal studies. In addition, studies can be conducted to examine the effects of the background Turkish music on children's thinking skills and on immigrant children's social adaptation motivation and psychological resiliency and on developmental areas of children with special education needs. Contribution of the background Turkish music to intrafamilial communication and interaction can be examined. In all these studies, stronger data can be acquired by using qualitative and quantitative method and mixed design.
Copyright disclosure
The Open Access copyright statement doesn't apply on the music material presented on the YouTube links.
Ethical statement
This research has been approved by the Ethical Board of Gazi University, Türkiye Ethical approval: E-77082166-604.01.02-349594
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