Digital binaural beat music for perceived stress relief among discipline inspection and supervision cadres: a...

Discipline inspection and supervision cadres are exposed to high levels of occupational stress, yet convenient and accessible forms of psychological support for this group remain limited.

This study aimed to examine the associations among self-efficacy, work engagement, subjective music listening experience, and psychological stress among discipline inspection and supervision cadres. It further explored whether subjective music listening experience played a potential mediating role in the relationship between self-efficacy/work engagement and psychological stress.

A mixed-methods, cross-sectional design was adopted. Using purposive sampling, in-service discipline inspection and supervision cadres from a region of Sichuan Province, China, were recruited. Participants completed measures of psychological stress, self-efficacy, work engagement, and music listening experience after a single session of binaural beat music listening. Quantitative data were analyzed using hierarchical regression and mediation analyses, while qualitative data were examined through thematic analysis.

Self-efficacy/work engagement and music listening experience were both significantly and negatively associated with psychological stress. Moreover, music listening experience explained psychological stress beyond the effects of self-efficacy/work engagement. However, music listening experience did not significantly mediate the relationship between self-efficacy/work engagement and psychological stress. This finding suggests that self-efficacy/work engagement and music listening experience may be associated with psychological stress through relatively independent pathways.

This study extends research on binaural beat music listening to a high-stress public-sector occupational group and provides preliminary evidence on the role of subjective music listening experience in relation to psychological stress.