The Effects of Music on Anxiety in College Students
Start Date
April 2020
End Date
April 2020
Major Field of Study
Psychology
Student Type
Undergraduate
Faculty Mentor(s)
William Phillips, PhD
Presentation Format
Poster Presentation
Abstract/Description
Previous research has shown that music may have an effect on cognitive components of stress and have examined effects of different music on perceived and physiological stress. A study consisted of 60 students from a university in Alabama that rated their relaxation levels and completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory after taking a mental test for 30 minutes. Results supported the hypothesis that participants listening to classical music or music they believed was relaxing were less anxious than individuals listening to hard rock music. The present study also examined the effects of different music genres on levels of anxiety. Participants were randomly assigned to groups listening to one of three genres: Rap, R&B/pop, Classical, and a control group listening to no music. The experiment took place in a computer lab where participants took a difficult online mental task for 10 minutes while one of the music conditions played in the background. After completing the mental task participants filled out the Perceived Stress Questionnaire and a short survey on demographics and music genre preference. It was hypothesized that people who listen to rap music will have lower mental task scores and higher levels of anxiety compared to the control group listening to no music. If people listened to classical music, mental task scores will be higher and anxiety levels will be lower than listening to no music. If people listened to music they enjoy, they will have higher mental task scores and less anxiety than the control group.
The Effects of Music on Anxiety in College Students
Previous research has shown that music may have an effect on cognitive components of stress and have examined effects of different music on perceived and physiological stress. A study consisted of 60 students from a university in Alabama that rated their relaxation levels and completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory after taking a mental test for 30 minutes. Results supported the hypothesis that participants listening to classical music or music they believed was relaxing were less anxious than individuals listening to hard rock music. The present study also examined the effects of different music genres on levels of anxiety. Participants were randomly assigned to groups listening to one of three genres: Rap, R&B/pop, Classical, and a control group listening to no music. The experiment took place in a computer lab where participants took a difficult online mental task for 10 minutes while one of the music conditions played in the background. After completing the mental task participants filled out the Perceived Stress Questionnaire and a short survey on demographics and music genre preference. It was hypothesized that people who listen to rap music will have lower mental task scores and higher levels of anxiety compared to the control group listening to no music. If people listened to classical music, mental task scores will be higher and anxiety levels will be lower than listening to no music. If people listened to music they enjoy, they will have higher mental task scores and less anxiety than the control group.
Comments
This presentation was accepted for the Scholarly and Creative Works Conference at Dominican University of California. The Conference was canceled due to the Covid-19 Pandemic