総合的英語リスニング能力と音楽的背景の関係解明に向けた基礎的研究 : 学習者の英語学習経験に着目して

The Relationship between general listening proficiency and musical background was investigated from the perspective of Japanese EFL learners with various levels of English learning experience. The subjects’ (n = 63) general English listening proficiency was examined by the listening section of a standardized English language proficiency test. With regard to musical background, the subjects’ fondness for school music education and out-of-school music activities were assessed by nine-point Likert-scale questionnaires at the elementary and junior high levels and from the elementary to college level, respectively. The subjects’ English learning experience, defined by the amount of their out-of-school English learning from the elementary to college level, was also assessed by the same style of questionnaires. Data analyses, including principle component regression analysis, revealed: 1) that both the learners’ English learning experience and musical background may be independently related in statistical significance to general listening proficiency, although the link between musical background and general listening proficiency is not strong; 2) that the observation of such relationships may become feasible when non-linear elements such as interactions of out-of-school music activity variables are employed; and 3) that the predictive power of the variance of general listening proficiency by musical background may reach its highest level, 27% (p=.00).