Abstract
The current study evaluated the efficacy of self-chosen music listening for the function of affect regulation comparing effects in younger and older adults. Forty younger (18–30 years, M = 19.75, SD = 2.57, 14 males) and forty older (60–81 years, M = 68.48, SD = 6.07, 21 males) adults visited the laboratory and were randomised to either the intervention (10 minutes of listening to self-chosen music) or the active control condition (10 minutes of listening to an experimenter-chosen radio documentary). Negative affect (NA) was induced in all participants using a speech preparation and mental arithmetic task, followed by the intervention/control condition. Measures of self-reported affect were taken at baseline, post-induction and post-intervention. Controlling for baseline affect and reactivity to the NA induction, in comparison with the active control group the music listening group demonstrated greater reduction in NA. Supporting developmental theories of positive ageing, analyses also found significant main effects for age, with older adults experiencing greater reduction of NA than younger adults, regardless of condition. Results of the current study provide preliminary insights into the effects of self-chosen music on induced NA, however, additional experimental control conditions comparing self-chosen and experimenter-chosen music with self-chosen and experimenter-chosen active controls are needed to fully understand music listening effects for affect regulation.
Highlights
Music listeners highlight affect regulation as the most common and most important function of music [1]
More than one third of the songs selected by older adults for affect regulation were classical pieces (37%), whereas less than 3% of the songs chosen by younger adults were classical
The hypothesis that a self-chosen music listening intervention will be more effective in regulating induced Negative affect (NA) than an experimenter-chosen active control was supported
Summary
Music listeners highlight affect regulation as the most common and most important function of music [1]. Affect regulation functions of music listening have been associated with higher levels of wellbeing in survey studies [2]. Experimental studies of music listening have reported a range of effects that have implications for enhancing wellbeing, including increased positive affect and decreased negative affect [3], increased relaxation [4], and reduced stress [5]. Fewer studies have examined the affect regulation effects of music listening following a stressor or negative affect induction.
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