The relationship between deliberate practice and performance satisfaction among professional musicians: the roles of flow experience and perfectionistic discrepancy

Background Performance satisfaction is an important indicator of professional musicians’ well-being and continued development in contemporary music performance contexts. Although deliberate practice has been extensively examined as a key factor in skill acquisition and expertise development, its relationship with subjective performance satisfaction and the psychological mechanisms underlying this relationship remain insufficiently understood. This study investigates the relationships among deliberate practice, flow experience, perfectionistic discrepancy, and performance satisfaction among professional musicians. Methods A questionnaire survey was conducted with 258 professional musicians. Validated scales were used to measure deliberate practice, flow experience, perfectionistic discrepancy, and performance satisfaction. Correlation analysis, mediation analysis, and moderated mediation analysis were performed using SPSS and Mplus to examine the proposed relationships and underlying mechanisms. Results Deliberate practice was positively associated with performance satisfaction. Flow experience was positively related to both deliberate practice and performance satisfaction and partially mediated the relationship between deliberate practice and performance satisfaction, with the indirect effect accounting for 52.2% of the total effect. Furthermore, perfectionistic discrepancy demonstrated differential moderating effects across the proposed pathways. Specifically, it significantly strengthened the relationship between deliberate practice and flow experience, as well as the direct relationship between deliberate practice and performance satisfaction. However, its moderating effect on the relationship between flow experience and performance satisfaction was not significant. Discussion The findings indicate that flow experience serves as an important psychological mechanism linking deliberate practice with musicians’ subjective performance satisfaction. Meanwhile, perfectionistic discrepancy plays a complex role by influencing specific pathways rather than uniformly affecting all relationships. These findings extend understanding of the psychological processes underlying musicians’ performance experiences and provide practical implications for music education and psychological interventions aimed at promoting both professional development and well-being.