Instrumental musical self-concept in secondary school: the influence of socio-demographic and educational variables in non-specialised educational environments.

Musical self-concept is a relevant construct in education research, due to its relationship with motivational, academic, and contextual variables. Our study aimed to analyse the levels of musical self-concept among adolescents in secondary education and to examine the relationship between musical self-concept and several sociodemographic and educational variables within the framework of school music taught as a subject in Spain. Our sample consisted of 980 students ages 12-18, enrolled in secondary schools in the autonomous regions of Aragon and Navarra. For data collection, we used the "instrumental musical self-concept" scale, along with a further questionnaire designed to collect contextual variables. We conducted variance analyses and a multiple linear regression analysis using the stepwise method. Our results show several significant differences in the level of an individual's instrumental musical self-concept by sex, habitat (urban/rural), whether they practice an instrument, and whether they receive educational support. We found that general instrumental practice is the main predictor of instrumental musical self-concept, both inside and outside the classroom. These findings contribute to a refined understanding of musical self-concept as a construct primarily driven by sustained instrumental practice and shaped by contextual educational conditions rather than solely by static socio-demographic factors. Our results highlight the need to consider several socio-educational and contextual variables when designing secondary school programmes and activities.