Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/328194 
Year of Publication: 
2025
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 18064
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
This paper estimates the long-term causal effects of music proficiency on emotional intelligence and mental health. Leveraging the staggered rollout of a school orchestra program as a quasi-experimental setting, we identify the causal impact of adolescent musical engagement. Our findings reveal that music training significantly improves both emotional intelligence and mental health into young adulthood. Specifically, musical proficiency fosters key non-cognitive traits, including self-motivation, optimism and adaptability, while also mitigating symptoms of poor mental health, including depression and anxiety. These positive effects are particularly pronounced for males and second-generation migrants. Our evidence demonstrates that learning music has a lasting positive impact on non-cognitive skills, suggesting that universal educational music programs can be a powerful, long-term tool for human capital development and inequality reduction.
Subjects: 
music training
emotional intelligence
mental health
transition to adulthood
extracurricular activities
JEL: 
D91
I24
J13
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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