Abstract
This thesis examines the relationship between repetitive sound, physiological arousal, and embodied participation in a Hmong shamanic ritual. Drawing on scholarship about music, trance, absorption, repetition, and Hmong ritual journeying and communication, I consider how sonic layers such as chant, rattle and gong help structure ritual time and sustain the shaman's altered state. The project uses electrodermal activity (EDA) data from wearable sensors, video and audio recordings, and my own event coding of sonic and physical activity during a selected 30-minute section of a recorded Hmong shaman ceremony. By aligning EDA data with a timeline of chanting, rattling, gong playing, and bench movement, this thesis asks how physiological arousal changes alongside the ritual soundscape. The analysis is exploratory and does not claim that EDA proves trance or that any single sound directly causes physiological change. However, the data reveal meaningful patterns. Across the excerpt, EDA changes appear more gradual than immediate, suggesting that physiological arousal was shaped across larger ritual phases. Gong periods emerged as especially significant: they corresponded to notable EDA differences for the shaman and the shaman's helper and produced the greatest variability across participants at the group level. These findings suggest that ritual sound may shape embodied participation across multiple bodies while allowing for different responses according to each participant's role. This thesis argues that repetitive sound and layered sonic change help organize the ritual environment in which trance is sustained and physically experienced.
Degree
MA
College and Department
Fine Arts and Communications; Music
Rights
https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Williams, Maile, "Repetition as Ritual Structure: Sound, Movement, and Electrodermal Activity in a Hmong Shaman Ceremony" (2026). Theses and Dissertations. 11392.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/11392
Date Submitted
2026-07-08
Document Type
Thesis
Permanent Link
https://arks.lib.byu.edu/ark:/34234/q274ed8563
Keywords
Hmong shamanic ritual, music and trance, sonic repetition, electrodermal activity, ritual practice, gong, physiological arousal
Language
english