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Carleton University

What is This Music? Musical Taste, Psychology, Sociology, Media, and Manipulation

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

Why do people like the music they like-and hate what they hate? Musical taste is connected to identity, personality, and community, as well as to marketing, semiotics, and technology. This thesis explores the many facets of musical taste-from the history of the recording business, to the way musical taste is framed in the media, to the body of research on musical preference and personality, to the way our tastes are measured (and shaped) in the era of big data-and how these threads are connected. Using extensive research into the study of music preference, as well as interviews with some of the leading researchers in the field, the thesis sheds light on the psychological and social factors that underpin our musical identities.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Journalism (M.J.)
Level thesis:degree_level
Master's
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Journalism
Grantor dc:publisher
Carleton University
Year dc:date.issued
2023

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Fraser, Malcolm

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • Copyright © 2023 the author(s). Theses may be used for non-commercial research, educational, or related academic purposes only. Such uses include personal study, research, scholarship, and teaching. Theses may only be shared by linking to Carleton University Institutional Repository and no part may be used without proper attribution to the author. No part may be used for commercial purposes directly or indirectly via a for-profit platform; no adaptation or derivative works are permitted without consent from the copyright owner.
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:carleton.scholaris.ca:20.500.14718/41700

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Carleton University
Base URL
carleton.scholaris.ca/server/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-24
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
related terms
citation

Fraser, Malcolm. What is This Music? Musical Taste, Psychology, Sociology, Media, and Manipulation. Master's thesis, Carleton University, 2023. https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14718/41700