Greasley, A.E. orcid.org/0000-0001-6262-2655, O'Grady, A. and Stapleton, S.E. (2025) Age is just a number: Persistent participation in Electronic Dance Music by women over 40 years. Psychology of Music. ISSN 0305-7356
Abstract
Participation in electronic dance music events has a range of benefits for health and wellbeing and attracts a broad range of attendees, including those who no longer fit within the category of ‘youth’. Although a broadening demographic indicates growing diversification and inclusivity within club culture, experiences differ between groups and reveal socially constructed norms associated with age and gender. This study investigated older women’s motivations for and experiences of participating in Electronic Dance Music (EDM) and explored how this group sustains and maintains their involvement. One hundred and thirty-six female clubbers aged 40 years or over (age range = 40–65 years) completed a survey. EDM participation played a central role in women’s mental and physical health and provided them with social connectedness, an outlet for self-expression, and a release from pressures of daily life. Despite these positive benefits, participation was not without challenges as women reported navigating other people’s views on what was deemed to be ‘appropriate’ behaviour for older, female clubbers and highlighted grappling with their own prejudices about age. The research identified strategies they use to manage their continued participation in a music scene traditionally associated with youth and considered the extent to which their experiences of ageing affect and shape their involvement.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2025. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | Electronic Dance Music, participation, older women, ageing, wellbeing |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures (Leeds) > School of Music (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 09 Dec 2024 16:08 |
Last Modified: | 29 May 2025 15:50 |
Status: | Published online |
Publisher: | SAGE |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/03057356251329229 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:220596 |