It’s not uncommon for people to use music as a gentle background noise while they work, but a new study looks to answer the question: do certain types of music help you work more effectively?
Yiren Ren, a a sixth-year Ph.D. student in Georgia Tech’s School of Psychology, has conducted studies exploring how music can affect memory and productivity, which have been published in the journals PLOS One and Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience (CABN).
“These studies are connected because they both explore innovative applications of music in memory modulation, offering insights for both every day and clinical use,” says Ren.
When it comes to what kind of music can help you work or study effectively, Ren says that a piece of music’s predictability and structure is paramount. Her study involved determining what types of music aided (or hindered) memory retention. “We wanted to probe music’s potential as a mnemonic device that helps us remember information more easily,” she says.
The study saw 48 participants attempt to memorize sequences of abstract shapes while listening to music. Both traditional pieces of music were used, as well as pieces that were comprised of the exact same notes, but ordered differently to give the music an off-kilter and atonal feel. The results were clear: the subjects were able to learn and memorize their sequences when the music played was familiar in both tone and structure, while music that was more “irregular” such as improvisational jazz or bebop made memorization much more difficult.
Interestingly, while atonal music made memorization tasks more difficult, Ren surmised from the study that music that is novel to the listener can help some people stick to a task for longer, as it may represent a breath of fresh air during what is otherwise monotonous work.
“These early studies reveal that music can both help and hinder our memory, depending on its familiarity and structure,” Ren says. “I’m excited to bring together my lifelong love of music with my interest in human memory. Because I think the next phase of my research could provide valuable evidence to support the development of music-based interventions for mental health and cognitive function.”
