What are the psychological benefits of studying

and listening to music?

TJ Ehlers
Senior Project Advisor: Stephen Sellers

Music engages the entire brain, and by doing so, can be highly therapeutic through
mood regulation and cognitive engagement.

Abstract
With the current ubiquity of music, the average person has the opportunity to listen to as much

music as they want, when they want, from any genre or location. With this new superpower

acquisitioned through the walkman and the radio, how can people change their lives for the

better? By studying the psychological and neurological effects of music, the effects of music

listening and study can be easily examined. The goal of this study is to understand what a person

can do to better their lives with music in the 21st century, where music is as easily accessible as

water, if not easier. Most studies that went into this paper showed positive effects of music,

whether neurologically, socially, or academically. It was found that music has positive effects on

the brain at every stage in life. Music grows the brain in young people, and in older Alzheimer’s

patients, music is shown to briefly bring back certain motor functions and memories. The

implication being made with this research is that one can better their cognition and possibly their

life by more closely involving themselves with music, whether it be through listening, curating,

watching, or playing.
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Introduction
Music is legendary for its inherent ability to bring humans emotion. Throughout the

course of human history, civilization has grown up and evolved right alongside music, and with

the technology of today, music’s effects on the mind can be better understood.

The field of musical psychology studies just this: the way that people experience and

interact with music. Whether it means studying the reasons that an individual chose their favorite

genre of music, or the greater cultural influence of music. Musical psychology includes the

questions of why people listen to the music that they do, how gender stereotypes affect music

listening, the culture involved in musical communities, and much more. By delving into the

neurological and psychological effects of music on the brain, the goal of this study is to figure

out what music truly means to humans, and the reactions that are made in the mind when music

is heard.

As anyone that has ever listened to music (and most people have) can say, music can

have emotional effects on the mind. This study wishes to explore not only the emotional aspect

of musical listening, of what is felt, but also the subconscious and neurological mechanisms

appearing when music is listened to. Studies have shown time and again the positive effects of

music, and what they can do for mental health patients. Music engages the entire brain, and by

doing so, can be highly therapeutic through mood regulation and cognitive engagement.

Context and History

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Music has existed since the dawn of civilization, with some ancient flutes dating back

43,000 years, and that is leaving out singing as a mode of creating music. As the concept of

music has overtaken mankind with its undeniable charm, it has evolved. Looking into just the

last 2,000 years, music has gone through many phases. Music existed in churches and at religious

gatherings mainly up until the year 500 AD. This is the earliest estimation as to when classical

music originated, and classical music still continues to this day. However, this split pales in

comparison to the explosion of genres and musical instruments seen in the last 100 years.

Jazz began to take hold of the US around 1920. Soon after came Elvis Presley, who

brought rock to the mainstream. In the sixties and following years, music split into countless

genres, and for every genre, a plethora of sub genres exist. Sub genres of rock include acid rock,

math rock, shred rock, doom, and classic rock, each with a unique sound. Hundreds of years ago,

the options for listening to music were highly limited, with little experimentation. Now, with

access to the internet and vastly improved technology, any type of music from any place in the

world can be found in a matter of seconds. Live music no longer is the only way of listening to

music, and with amplification, live performers can broadcast their sound to as many people as

will fit in a stadium. It is easy to see that the way that music is experienced today is a far cry

from its inception.

Along with this change has come not only a better product (as the music being played can

cater very specifically to all listeners with the multitude of genres to choose from), but a better

understanding of music itself. Something that sets the current generation apart from the hundreds

before is the most complex understanding of music theory that we have ever had. With the tool

that is music theory, musicians can easily cite, critique and compare parts of songs, musical

techniques, and songwriting methods. This high level understanding of music theory allows
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musicians to discuss music with similar terms, in order to be better understood. Knowledge of

music theory is a language within itself.

With their own language, a platform for discussion has been made for musicians and

musicologists alike. This has allowed ideas in music to expand beyond the realm of simply what

the content of a song is. By being able to describe melodies and songs with highly specific terms,

they become more easily measurable and comparable to other data. Musical key or tempo can be

easily related to reported feelings from listeners, and correlations can be drawn with better

accuracy than simply describing one song as “sad”, and another as “happy”. Quantifiable

numbers and criteria allow musicologists to relate their work to other fields. As a specific

example of relating a study between music theory and psychology, a researcher could measure

ratings of pleasure from participants based on the amount of minor chords in a song. While this

would be simplistic, it’s a proof of concept.

Unfortunately, the language that musicians use to communicate — music theory — is a

difficult one to understand and learn. Despite this, a definition of key terms will be below in

hopes of harboring a deeper discussion about the topics at hand.

Time Signature - Time signature indicates the rhythm of a song. It is expressed as a fraction

(most commonly 4/4), and denotes the amount of beats in a measure, and the denomination of

each beat.
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Chord - Any combination of more than one note

Key - A specific group of notes and chords used together. Keys often are minor or major,

sounding — put simply— sad or happy respectively.

Research and Analysis

The brave new world of music that is the 21st century has much to offer, and through

science and psychology, it’s possible now to study the effects of music more so than ever before.

Musical psychology encompasses many aspects of human nature and behavior. A study

conducted by David Hargreaves focused much on the function of music in everyday life, and

what psychological effects it has on people. He gives a useful way to think about music: “From

the psychologist’s perspective, the functions of music fall into three broad domains, namely the

cognitive, the emotional and the social” (Hargreaves 5). While perhaps somewhat simplified,

using these three categories is useful for identifying some of the basic factors that drive people to

listen to their favorite music. This being said, it is important to acknowledge that the categories

and examples of genres given are not rules. Musicians can express whatever they choose to

through any genre of music. The examples given below are generalizations.

As the first example, a cognitive listener would be more enticed into their favorite kind of

music by the complexity of it. Music filling a cognitive purpose may be harmonically complex,

meaning that more complicated, more obscure chords are used to create a more unique sound.

Perhaps the song switches rapidly between time signatures, as is common in math rock, a genre

of rock centered specifically around its complexity. Math rock songs often use dissonant (often

very off-putting) chords and odd time signatures. The music is intentionally made to cater to an
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audience that appreciates the band’s strange sound, brought along by the music’s complexity. Put

simply, it has cognitive musical value.

Alternatively, using music for a more emotional purpose often yields a different set of

music. To serve an emotional purpose, the music is less centered around its complexity, and

often more so its message. To make a generalization, American country music is a good example

of this. This genre takes much inspiration from blues and folk, often using mainly acoustic

instruments. Country music often revolves around its character and message, rather than the

virtuosity or skill of the musician(s) playing. The message of the music is key, rather than fast

playing or harmonic complexity. A listener to emotional music derives just that from it: emotion.

For the last category, social listening, the music is designed more for a group of people.

This music is slightly harder to identify, as any music is social music if played for more than one

person. That being said, the best example for social music is dance music. Heavy bass and drum

emphasis makes for good music to dance to. This music would often be found at parties or in

clubs. Music in this sense acts to encourage social interaction and fun. A song such as Mi Gente,

by J Balvin is a perfect song to describe this. The song’s listening value is not meant specifically

for a person to enjoy alone and analyze. It is a song carefully designed in order to bring life to

parties and social situations. In this sense, the music fulfills a social purpose.

Neurology and Therapeutic Uses for Music

This transitions perfectly into the social aspect of music itself. Music is inherently social.

Music played in social situations gives a common interest for everyone to enjoy, a common

experience that is shared. The “mood regulation” that music gives allows social situations to be

bent and warped to the liking of the person playing the music, creating an aesthetic. At a dinner
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party, the host may choose to play classical music to give a certain effect to his guests. Friends

riding in the car together might share their favorite music to create a certain feeling that their

passengers can enjoy collectively. In this sense, music acts as a social lubricant, and directly

changes the mood and thoughts of the listener.

Furthermore, this often subliminal change that occurs for the listener is one often used by

businesses. Researchers studied this in 1999 using a wine shop as an example. French music or

German music would be played at the store in an attempt to alter the customers’ buying habits:

“French music led to French wines outselling German ones, whereas German music led to the

opposite effect on sales of French wine” (Hargreaves 1). This subliminal psychological shift

shows the almost frightening power that music can have over individuals. The effect of music

when used in businesses is undeniable. Creating an aesthetic to cater to the patrons of an

establishment is widespread. Dance music is played in clubs, classical music is played in

museums, all in the hopes of reinforcing the aesthetic of the business.

Music’s powerful effects don’t only influence the shopping and spending habits of

people, but can have therapeutic effects for people struggling with mental illness. In an article

published on Alzheimers.net, a website created in hopes of helping these patients, the effects of

music on Alzheimer’s patients is exemplified. One of the main points brought up is that music

can evoke memories exceedingly well. Put simply, “Music evokes emotion, and emotion can

bring with it memory… it brings back the feeling of life when nothing else can” (5 Reasons Why

Music Boosts Brain Activity, 2014). The reason for this phenomenon is largely due to the fact

that the areas of the brain affected by Alzheimer’s are often unrelated to the parts that are used

for musical enjoyment. Advanced Alzheimer’s patients are documented singing, dancing, and
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tapping their feet to the rhythm of the song. In a life where even feeding oneself is impossible,

music can bring forward the emotions and life that was once lost in these individuals.

It’s undeniable that Alzheimer’s and dementia are painful and debilitating to their

victims. The loss of cognitive ability and memory can send patients into intense states of anxiety

due to their inability to process information correctly. While music might not be the instant cure

to these diseases, it can help mitigate them, and any action possible against these diseases is a

way to greatly lessen pain in patients’ lives.

Although it may not be the cure-all to Alzheimer’s, music has therapeutic properties that

can mitigate the pain from many diseases. The American Music Therapy Association lists music

therapy as, “the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish

individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has

completed an approved music therapy program.” This association aims to provide therapy to

individuals suffering with various illnesses by providing musical guidance.

While the definition seems vague, there is an easy way to think of what music therapists

do: Normal psychotherapists use speech as their mode of communication to their patients, while

music therapists use music to communicate information to their patients. Sessions with music

therapists may look different for different patients, but there are a few different themes that can

recur. Music therapy can involve songwriting, discussion of lyrics, improvisation on instruments,

and more.

Delving deeper, it’s important to ask if the method of music therapy really is viable for

treating individuals with disorders and disabilities. NCBI.gov (National Center for

Biotechnology Information) published an evaluation of different studies exploring music

therapy, in an attempt to figure out what kinds of results patients were getting. The three groups
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studied were victims of stroke, those with neurological disorders, and those with dementia. A

total of twenty-five studies were reviewed, and it was found that all studies except for three

showed improvement in condition after experiencing musical therapy. The three studies that

were exceptions simply showed no change. NCBI concluded that, “Music-based activities can

represent a valid and without side effects intervention for reducing psychological and behavioral

disturbances related to neurological disorders and also for promoting the functional recovery”

(Raglio, 2015).

Clearly, music does incredible things to the human mind. By affecting mood, music can

get through to individuals struggling in their everyday lives from illnesses that have not been

curable yet. In the current day and age, Alzheimer’s is not curable, nor is autism or PTSD.

However, these are all examples of diseases that can be treated through the use of music therapy.

Something as simple as music can bring back feeling to a person’s life if used in the correct way,

and by harnessing this power, yet another channel of treatment for sick individuals has been

discovered, despite music existing for nearly all of human history.

This aforementioned power that music has can be seen neurologically, in what music

does to the brain when listened to. Polish researcher Elżbieta Galińska put the neurological

mechanisms of music into 4 categories when studying the effects of music therapy (Galińska,

837):

1. Musical Entrainment - the tuning to the rhythm of a song. This is the

synchronization that people tend to follow when hearing a beat, i.e. tapping one’s

foot.

2. Patterned information processing - patterns over time engage the brain by giving

it a temporal stimulus to follow.

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3. Processing of music through different (non-auditory) parts of the brain - music

interconnects signals throughout the brain, and this includes parts of the brain not

normally stimulated when hearing non-music sound.

4. Affective-Aesthetic response - this is the emotional response that is derived from

music listening.

In all of these senses, music engages the brain and draws its attention. In people where

these brain responses are often lost in everyday life, music revives these functions. By

stimulating the entire brain, music captivates those who listen, and to their benefit.

Musical Identity
The memories that music can evoke from someone in the late stages of their life are only

discoverable because of the strong role that music plays in life development. Musical identity is a

concept explored deeply by musical psychologists, and gives a glimpse into what music really

means to individuals. This inseparable connection to music that all people have develops and

intertwines alongside one’s identity as a whole, starting from the moment people are born. Put

simply, musical identity is a given individual’s identity in relation to music. Musicianship,

favorite genre, and concert attendance can all contribute to musical identity.

Music brings along familiarity and memory, even in the earliest stages of one’s life.

Samuel Mehr conducted a study to gauge infants’ ability to learn and recognize songs with an

interesting method. 64 11-month-old infants were exposed to a specific song, either through their

parents, or by activating a recording in a toy over the course of 1-2 weeks. When the period of

exposure was over, the infants viewed videos of two different people. Each video showed a

person singing a song (one of them being the song they were previously exposed to), then
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presenting a toy to the infant: “Infants in both conditions preferentially chose the object endorsed

by the singer of the familiar song. Nevertheless, infants’ visual attention to that object was

predicted by the degree of song exposure only for infants who learned from the singing of a

parent” (Mehr, 1). The study goes on to claim that infants put social meaning upon songs, and

can obviously understand what music is, aside from simply speaking. This goes to show how

ubiquitous music is within human life.

Furthermore, the initial exposure to music in an infant’s life can have significant effects

on self expression and identity. The conductors of the study remarked, “Gradually, vocal/musical

play gives rise to speech and words on the one hand, and to more specific musical activities such

as imitation and improvising on the other, so that singing develops as another sphere of activity

in its own right” (Hargreaves, 6). A child’s learning about music allows them to decide how

involved they want to become with it. Parents’ musical enjoyment and musical aptitude also

plays a role in how attached children become to music.

Continuing through life, children can choose to become musicians or not, often starting

through school programs. At this stage in life, around middle school, the social atmosphere is

very different. Identity is central to a young person’s life. Kids will split off into cliques, leaving

the individual to figure out exactly where they want to fit in. Exhibiting musical preferences is a

very powerful yet simple way to strengthen one’s own identity at such a young age.

Research was done on just this, switching musical preference for instrument choice in

school bands. A sample of 99 middle school children in a school band were asked about their

view on which instruments were “boy” instruments, and which were “girl” instruments. The

survey showed that, “Across bands, three instruments contained unanimous gender assignments;

all students categorized tuba as a boy instrument, while flute and clarinet were girl instruments.
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With the exception of saxophone (46.5% of the sample selecting boy) and bassoon (52.5% of the

sample selecting boy), gender assignments across bands were fairly clear for most instruments”

(Wrape, 2016). While not clear across the board, it is obvious that children adopt gender

stereotypes about their instruments and preferences. In this example, when given a choice of

instrument, a girl would likely choose the clarinet when given a choice of instruments, purely

because it’s what the norm demands. Playing an instrument necessarily entwines the player with

the type of music associated with their instrument. Simply because of gender norms, students

may inadvertently change their musical taste due to their choice of gendered instrument.

Enjoyment of Music
Nearly every person on the planet enjoys music in some way or another. Music is

ubiquitous across the human race. Many people have a very casual relationship with music,

enjoying whatever is on the radio, or whatever their friends listen to. Some, conversely, are

connoisseurs, delving deep into the technicalities of the music, its production and writing style.

The latter group would be composed of musicians and buffs. While music surely is an interesting

topic, what reason does this group of musicians and music experts have to have gotten more

involved with music? Surely dissecting and analyzing music ruins it. Contrary to this point,

heavy music listening and study can help enjoyment of music.

A neurological study explored just this by doing fMRI scans on participants while

playing them a musical clip. The music was that of an experienced pianist, one who attempted to

put greater accents on certain notes, so as to add a human aspect to the performance. Another

clip was of an identical performance, but played mechanically, without accentation or minor

tempo change for effect. After analyzing their data, the researchers went on to draw some points
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about which parts of the brain showed activity during the tests: “It may be that all listeners

perceive motion arising from changes in tempo through activation of mirror neuron and motor

systems. However, it is possible that mirror neuron activity only influences emotional responses

in listeners with explicit experience conveying emotion through music performance” (Chapin,

11). Musical learning gives a certain amount of reward to the learner. By more deeply studying

music, one can affect the way that their brain interprets it, for the better.

The specific occurrences in music that stimulate pleasure responses are not elusive to

scientists, luckily. While a rather simple term, “groove” is the word of choice used in multiple

studies to figure out what in music gives people positive experiences. Scientists used a survey

online to track the effects of music on randomized people. The participants were given song

samples, then asked to rate “pleasure”, and “wanting to move” for each track. The results were

judged through the context of complex chords, and complex rhythm. “Rhythm showed an

inverted U-shaped relationship with ratings of pleasure and wanting to move, whereas medium

and low complexity chords were rated similarly” (Matthews, 1). This means that rhythm that was

too simple was boring, whereas overly-complex rhythm didn’t give the listener enjoyment either.

The same can be said about chords. Coinciding with the last study, this study also found that

between musicians and non-musicians, musicians derived greater “pleasure” ratings from the

tests. This boosts the argument that studying music can lead to greater enjoyment.

Conclusion and Analysis

Music clearly has a powerful effect on people, whether it be obvious or not. Music is

used in businesses, social groups, and can even be presented in its own venue. Individuals listen

to music and share it with people to create vast and flourishing communities of members, all
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together to enjoy a specific type of music or artist. This greater encompasses the cultural aspect

of music, whereas the question lies in psychology.

Neurologically, humans seem to be naturally geared towards music creation and

spectation. Music has existed since before writing in primitive humans, and can even be (poorly)

imitated, yet understood by human infants under a year old. Humans have obvious developed an

evolutionary connection to this strange symphony of syncopated sounds, so it’s no surprise how

deep its effects can go.

Music affects learning and development in a very important way. Not only does parents

singing lullabies and playing music for their babies calm them down, but it teaches them a great

amount about the world that lies ahead. Music teaches babies how to use their voice, as babies

can often be seen attempting to imitate songs that their parents have sung. As shown in Samuel

Mehr’s study, babies, incapable of speech, were still able to recognize and remember songs when

presented to them. The babies chose the toys given by the familiar song-singers, an indication

that babies understand the sociality of music, if only in the simplest way possible. Music was

able to connect an infant to their parent, simply through the parent singing every so often to their

child. Again, music clearly is deeply rooted in humans.

The study of musical identity shows less how humans are affected by music, but how

humans can affect music. The sheer power of music to inspire social connections leads to vast

communities of listeners that any person might eventually find themselves in. Especially in the

world of today, with hundreds upon hundreds of different genres of music, people can choose

whichever form they enjoy most. To get into the specifics of a study, a young person’s identity in

their music class might be affected by gender stereotypes for instruments, and what boys and

girls “should” be playing. This choice of instrument, made from nothing but the person’s decided
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identity, can send one spiraling off down a rabbit hole of musical communities. By this, people

are affected socially, possibly even changing norms to better fit with their musicians of choice.

Finally, music is highly therapeutic to people, and its mood regulation properties can’t be

understated. The purpose of mood regulation by music isn’t simply to make people buy more

French or German wine. Mood regulation can take place on the individual scale through listening

to music alone for consolation. On a greater scale, music socially brings people together, such as

at parties. On the most important note, music can help individuals struggling with end-of-life

mental health problems such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. Again, people with these diseases

were shown to have much greater cognitive function when listening to music, despite lacking

very basic function. Music evokes emotion, which evokes memories. These effects of music

occur on parts of the brain not affected by Alzheimer’s.

By combining this data, it’s clear to see that music has a positive effect on human life,

and is clearly intertwined with our way of living. Music is not only a part of culture, not only a

part of everyday life, but a part of the human race. Engaging with music is not only a process of

fun or learning, but of self-betterment. Through learning about music, humans can engage in self

betterment, while also deriving more pleasure from the act of listening to music itself.
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"The

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