Flow is a positive emotional experience that occurs when one is concentrating on an activity, feeling motivated, satisfied with one's performance and abilities, and loses track of time. While this area of intrinsic motivation has been previously studied with individuals in various activities, this study examined 36 musicians in both a group and individual setting to determine if group flow experiences differ from individual flow experiences. The results of this study show that group flow is a common experience. People in group flow experiences reported a significantly higher degree of sociability than people in individual flow experiences; t (28) = 2.82 g < .05. Participants in individual settings experienced significantly more involvement than participants in groups; t (28) = 2.37 g < .05. The Activation total, which consisted of five questions added together, also showed a stronger significant difference of individual flow over group flow; t (23) = 2.13 g < .05. More research examining the differences between individual and group settings is needed to further understand the complex emotional and cognitive components that comprise the flow experience.

Thesis (M.S.)--Northern Illinois University, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [82]-85).