An embodied and creative intervention in undergraduate music education: effects on motivation, creativity, and self-efficacy

Purpose This study investigates whether an embodied and creativity-oriented pedagogical intervention can enhance learning motivation, musical creativity, and self-efficacy among undergraduate music education students through an integrated Embodied Rhythm Creation Agency (ERCA) framework. Design/methodology/approach A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design was employed with 100 undergraduate music education students from a teacher education university in a non-tier-one city in China. The experimental group received an ERCA-informed instructional intervention, while the control group followed regular teaching practices. Learning motivation, musical creativity, and self-efficacy were measured before and after the intervention. Findings No significant differences were found between groups at pretest. At posttest, the experimental group showed significantly higher levels of learning motivation, musical creativity, and self-efficacy compared with the control group, indicating positive effects of the ERCA-based intervention. Originality/value This study proposes and empirically tests an integrative pedagogical mechanism that connects embodied rhythmic engagement, creative music-making, and learner agency within a unified instructional framework in higher music education.