Psychology Facts

▼ Music ▼

Leave me some ideas!!

》Music is the pleasing sound created by voices or instruments following some tonal structure. If you sing, whistle, or play an instrument, you are making music. You can also write music using the specific language of notes.


》The psychology of music seeks to interpret musical phenomena in terms of mental function; that is, it seeks to characterize the ways in which people perceive, remember, perform, create, and respond to music.

》Listening to music, any music engages our brains. Different parts of the brain interact with music and create our physiological experience of it, from the auditory cortex, which first works to break down what we're hearing in terms of pitch and volume, to the amygdala, which processes emotions, and the mesolimbic system, which deals with pleasure response and neurotransmitters like dopamine. Our memory centers and motor systems also get in on the groove

》Music promotes self-awareness.

both listening and playing music may promote self-awareness. When listening to music that allows you to spend time with yourself, you understand that you can be your own company. The more time you spend with yourself the more aware of your brain and heart you become. Listening to music may also promote self-awareness by listening to artists who write lyrics we can relate to. 

》Empathetic people listen to music differently.

as a result of some studies, empathetic people tend to listen to and feel music differently than others. Highly empathetic people have some interesting brain patterns that make them more sensitive to words and sounds than listeners who don't identify as empathetic. This could mean that most big music buffs are empathetic humans.

》The type of music you listen to affects the way you perceive the world/feel.

Pop
One study I found indicates that popular music is associated with higher levels of endurance and spurts of energy, possibly because of its usual upbeat personality. This makes it an excellent choice for your workout playlists—it may literally help you run the extra mile.Rap

According to research from Cambridge University's Department of Psychology, rap music, "with its rags-to-riches narrative trajectories, displays 'positive visual imagery,' a psychotherapeutic technique common among sports stars, in which one envisages the place where one would like to be, so as to facilitate one's progression to a better mental place." Additionally, because of the intricate beats and often intense word counts, relative to other genres of music, rap songs often include incredibly clever wordplay—which can make the genre a great creative resource for poets and authors.

Classical
The classical genre is a wide field that contains in itself an incredible spectrum of music. Its pieces may sometimes suggest a sense of calm but often can evoke the complete opposite. The strength of orchestral music—what we often think of as "classical"—involves telling a story, oftentimes without using words. The Mozart effect is the theory that listening to the music of Mozart may temporarily boost scores on one portion of an IQ test. Popular science versions of the theory make the claim that "listening to Mozart makes you smarter" or that early childhood exposure to classical music has a beneficial effect on mental development.Jazz

This genre of music (for a while) was relegated to elevator music, but it could be experiencing a resurgence in popularity.  This is good news for your brain as music with a more mellow tempo (of about 60 bpm) is associated with a feeling of calmness and relaxation. Many classic jazz songs run at that more relaxing clip, providing a great incentive to slow down and take a journey through popular songs of the past.

Metal

This genre of music—which includes screamo, punk, and other extreme styles of singing—often gets a bad rap, but studies have shown that listening to this music is associated with enhanced positive emotions.

》Rap lovers tend to be aggressive, have high self-esteem, and are outgoing.

》Lovers of the indie genre are introverted, passive, anxious, creative, and have low self-esteem.

》People who prefer dance music are outgoing and assertive.

》Classical music lovers are introverted creative and have a good sense of self-esteem

》Jazz, blues, or soul music lovers tend to be extroverted and have high self-esteem.

》Music Can Improve Cognitive Performance
research suggests that background music, or music that is played while the listener is primarily focused on another activity, can improve performance on cognitive tasks in older adults. One study found that playing more upbeat music led to improvements in processing speed, while both upbeat and downbeat music led to benefits in memory.

》Your favorite song is probably your favorite because you associate it with an emotional event in your life.


》Music Can Help Manage Pain
Research has shown that music can be very helpful in the management of pain. One study of fibromyalgia patients found that those who listened to music for just one hour a day experienced a significant reduction in pain compared to those in researchers noted that listening to music pre-surgery resulted in better outcomes. The review looked at data from more than 7,000 patients and found that music listeners also required less medication to manage their pain. There was also a slightly greater, though not statistically significant, improvement in pain management results when patients were allowed to select their own music.

》Music May Help You Sleep Better
Insomnia is a serious problem that affects people of all age groups. While there are many approaches to treating this problem, research has demonstrated that listening to relaxing classical music can be a safe, effective, and affordable remedy.​ In a study looking at college students, participants listened to classical music, an audiobook, or nothing at all at bedtime for three weeks. Researchers assessed sleep quality both before and after the intervention. The study found that participants who had listened to music had significantly better sleep quality than those who had listened to the audiobook or received no intervention.