This research investigates the educational benefits of traditional musical games (TMGs) for primary school students. The study's foundation rests on three pillars: the inherent right of children to play, the unique pedagogical value of musical games, and the social and emotional development fostered by collaborative play. The right to play, enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, is acknowledged as crucial for holistic child development, encompassing physical, social, cognitive, and emotional growth. Musical games, characterized by implicit rules and musical structure, provide opportunities for exploration, improvisation, and self-expression. These games often incorporate songs or rhymes, enhancing memory, diction, and rhythmic abilities, while their collaborative nature promotes a sense of belonging and group cohesion. TMGs transmit cultural values, belief systems, and ideologies, fostering a sense of identity and unity among participants. The selection of game partners is influenced by factors like enjoyment, self-confidence, and shared characteristics, highlighting the importance of cooperative learning and mutual acceptance. The study recognizes a lack of specific scales for assessing the socio-educational competencies related to TMGs in the Spanish context, motivating the development and validation of a new instrument.

The study reviewed existing literature on the impact of games on children's development. Several scales assess emotional experiences in game contexts, particularly within physical education, such as the Games and Emotions Validation Scale (GES-II) and the CATCH scale. However, these instruments often neglect the specific contribution of music education within traditional games. The study’s theoretical framework draws upon Allport's intergroup contact theory, Schwartz's theory of cultural values, and Triandis's triadic model of attitude. Allport's theory highlights the potential of positive intergroup contact to reduce prejudice. Schwartz's model emphasizes the role of cultural values in shaping attitudes and behavior, focusing on values such as autonomy, group membership, and egalitarianism. Finally, Triandis' triadic model explores the cognitive, affective, and behavioral components of attitudes towards TMGs.

The study employed a mixed-methods design, combining qualitative and quantitative approaches. The qualitative phase involved designing and refining an initial 30-item questionnaire based on the selected theoretical framework. This questionnaire examined children's perceptions of TMGs, focusing on their right to play, preferences for specific games, criteria for choosing partners, and the emotional dimensions of the games. The questionnaire items were grouped into four categories corresponding to the key aspects highlighted in the theoretical framework: Right to Play, Preferences/Fun, Choice of Game Partners, and Emotions/Inclusion. Three experts in traditional games reviewed the items for clarity, appropriateness, and alignment with the categories. Following expert feedback, the items were formatted using a 7-point Likert scale. The quantitative phase involved validating the scale using classical test theory. First, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted on the initial 30-item questionnaire, which revealed a KMO index of 0.787 and Bartlett's sphericity test (X² = 2153.757; p = 0.000). Subsequently, a parallel analysis was performed to refine the initial factor structure, determining the optimal number of factors based on a comparison of eigenvalues from the EFA and eigenvalues from randomly generated data. This analysis led to the reduction of the number of factors to three. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was then performed on a reduced set of items, yielding a four-factor model with 18 items, showing improved model fit. A bootstrapping analysis was also conducted to evaluate the model's robustness, considering the potential limitations of sample size. Data were collected from 276 primary school students (144 boys, 132 girls; median age: 8.71 years) using a pen-and-paper format in their classrooms, with teacher supervision and informed consent obtained from parents/guardians.

The EFA initially identified nine factors with eigenvalues greater than 1, explaining 58.5% of the variance. However, parallel analysis suggested a more parsimonious model with only four factors. The CFA confirmed this four-factor structure, resulting in a refined 18-item scale. The four factors were: Right to Play, reflecting the children's understanding of their right to participate in TMGs; Fun and Preferences, representing the enjoyment and motivations underlying their choices of TMGs; Choice of Game Partners, illustrating the factors that influence partner selection; and Emotions and Inclusion, encompassing the emotional experiences and sense of inclusivity within the game context. The final CFA model demonstrated excellent fit indices (CMIN/df = 1.653, CFI = 0.929, RMSEA = 0.049), and bootstrapping analysis (n=10,000) further supported the model's validity (Bollen-Stine bootstrap p-value = 0.334). The 18 items representing the four factors were carefully correlated with the theoretical framework providing a comprehensive evaluation of the TMGs' impact on children's educational competencies.

The validated 18-item scale provides a valuable tool for assessing the educational impact of TMGs, addressing the gap in existing measurement instruments. The four-factor structure aligns well with the theoretical framework, demonstrating the interrelation between children’s right to play, their preferences for specific game features, partner selection criteria, and their emotional experiences within the game context. The scale's capacity to capture various aspects of TMGs' impact on social, emotional, and cognitive development underscores its potential contribution to educational research and practice. The study confirms the importance of TMGs as an integral component of child development, highlighting their role in fostering cultural identity, promoting social inclusion, and developing key competencies.

This study successfully designed and validated a new scale to measure the educational competencies developed through traditional musical games. The 18-item, four-factor scale offers a valuable tool for researchers and educators to assess the multifaceted impact of TMGs on primary school children. Future research could explore the scale's cross-cultural applicability and examine the scale's longitudinal impact on children's development. Further qualitative studies could provide additional in-depth analysis of children’s and teachers’ experiences with TMGs.

The primary limitation of this study was the convenience sampling method, which may affect the generalizability of the findings. Future research should employ more representative sampling techniques to enhance the external validity of the scale. The study focused on a specific cultural context (Spain), and further research is needed to explore the cross-cultural applicability of the scale and to adapt it to other contexts. The self-reported nature of the data also limits the scope of the study.