|
Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
|
|
UK: 'One-In-Four Opera Lover Smoke Cannabis'
Lifestyle Extra
Thursday 14 Sep 2006 They might be considered to be cultured and sophisticated - but many classical music and opera lovers could be cannabis-smoking criminals, according to the largest ever academic survey of musical taste. The report showed a quarter of them admitted having smoked cannabis, and one-in-eight opera fans had tried magic mushrooms. Almost half of both classical and opera lovers admitted breaking driving laws. The research, carried out on more than 2,500 people in the UK about to be published in the journal Psychology of Music, shows that a person's musical preference tells a great deal about their lifestyle and interests. Dr North, a psychologist at the University of Leicester which carried out the survey, said: "There's a real tendency for people who like certain types of music to be stereotyped - for example that hip-hop and rap fans are far more likely to be drug-taking law breakers. "In some respects the survey supports that but it also shows that people who like other types of music wouldn't necessarily fill a particular mould associated with that type of music. "Opera fans certainly qualify for that description. Although we may think of them as law-abiding, straight-laced or cultured and sophisticated, the survey shows many of them smoke cannabis and have driving convictions." The survey also showed how hip-hop and dance music fans were generally younger and more promiscuous. It revealed that 37.5 per cent of hip hop fans and 28.7 per cent of dance music fans had had more that one sexual partner in the past five years, compared with 1.5 per cent of country fans. It also showed how they were the least conscientious - being the least likely to be religious, to recycle and also the least likely to favour raising taxes in order to improve public services and the most unlikely to favour keeping the NHS. They were also the most likely to have broken the law with 56.9 per cent of dance music fans and 53.1 per cent of hip hop fans admitted to having broken the law - compared with 17.9 per cent of musicals fans. Although hip-hop and dance music fans were the most likely to have tried a range of illegal drugs, the survey found that a quarter of classical and opera fans admitted to having tried cannabis and 12.3 per cent of opera fans having tried magic mushrooms. Nearly half (46 per cent) of opera and 45.4 per cent of classical lovers also admitted in the survey to having committed driving offences. However, they could afford any fines they might receive on the road with an average annual income of £35,000, compared to £23,311 among dance music fans. Different tastes in music was also reflect in different tastes in the media. The research found that BBC1 viewers are likely to be fans of rock or classical music, whereas ITV's viewers prefer to listen to disco and pop. It is hoped the survey, funded by the British Academy, will help Dr North and his team determine to what extent people's musical tastes can be predicted on the basis of basic demographic information, such as age, sex and earnings. Dr North added: "Although we know a lot about musical preference, this is the largest ever academic survey of who likes what. Nothing on this scale has ever been attempted before. "Surprisingly there have been very few studies on how people's age, sex, socioeconomic status, and personality relate to the music they enjoy listening to. "Moreover, this limited amount of research has focused almost exclusively on North America. This is despite the fact that music is enjoyed by people all around the world and, in addition, there are numerous stereotypes about the types of people who listen to certain musical styles that may or may not be true - for example that goths are depressed, classical music fans are upper-class, jazz fans are like the presenter of the Fast Show's Jazz Club. "Musicaltastetest.com aims to recruit over 10,000 people to paint the first worldwide picture of who likes what." Dr Adrian North is extending his research worldwide. He is looking for 10,000 people from all over the world to take part in an online survey at www.musicaltastetest.com, stating their preference from over 50 musical styles http://www.lse.co.uk/
After you have finished reading this article you can click here to go back.
|
This page was created by the Cannabis Campaigners' Guide.
Feel free to link to this page!