Countless times I have found myself sitting in the library dozing off or not paying attention. It’s ironic because I go to the library for the quietness so I can concentrate. Yet, when it’s too quiet I get bored or lose focus in what I’m doing. In search of a happy medium, I stumbled upon a website that recommended some light background music (Centura par. 4).
The Stanford University School of Medicine conducted an experiment in 2007 to see if music helps the brain pay attention. The study was composed of pictures of multiple individuals and their brains while they were listening to musical symphonies. The findings backed up the recommendation made by Centura College. Light background music activated parts of the brain that deal with attention, memory, and even prediction making (Baker par. 2). The pictures were taken using an fMRI, which essentially allowed the researchers to see the brain at work. The study found that the musical composition helped the individuals collect the presentment. Jonathan Berger, a professor of music and a musician, explains how music benefits the brain and helps sharpen it for future endeavors. Apparently, long-term music appreciation can lead to better prediction of affairs and help individuals keep in thought (par. 14).
According to an article written by Sheela Doraiswamy, there are many benefits to listening to music in general. She says that music has been noticed to enhance memory, math ability, and even attention span. Music can apparently also lessen the symptoms of anxiety and depression. Already it seems reasonable to start listening to music because the negatives of listening to music outweigh the symptoms of anxiety and depression. Doraiswamy mentions a study that took place at the University of Wales. The test was a memory test based on students’ capability to call to mind items in a certain sequence. The students performed the test in exactly five different scenarios. Although this test proved to be non-beneficial to the idea that music is helpful, the researchers at the University of Wales recognized that the study was random and that music’s’ effect could vary on every individual. Doraiswamy mentions a study from the University of Dayton that found that students performed better on an examination if classical music was used in the background.
One study conducted by Glenn Schellenberg, a psych professor in the University of Toronto, revealed that certain music actually negatively affects one’s ability to understand readings. Essentially, Schellenberg recommends music listeners to listen to calmer music when trying to study or do work that requires focus. Melanie Fineman, a student at Brown University, also recommends listening to music while studying.
Music can benefit study, depending on the type of music being played. Music also can also reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, so it’ll be more beneficial than destructive. Personally, I listened to music the entire time I was preparing this blog post, and the music itself did not distract me once.
The Stanford University School of Medicine Experiment
USA Today College’s Article Containing Glenn Schellenberg Study
This post caught my attention because my personal study habits changed when i got to college. In high school I completed most of my homework in my room with the background noise of my family doing daily activities in the house. Now that I do most of my work in the library, the silence does prevent me from having full attention towards my work. Along with more time spent in a quiet area, the work at college requires more focus than it did in high school. The article below talks about the difficulty of college compares to the previous years in high school.
http://howtostudyfaster.blogspot.com/2014/07/is-college-harder-than-high-school.html
One reason that I chose this article to comment on was because of two things: one, I love listening to music and have always wondered if it helps with the studying process, and two, because I have never been able to both study and listen to music at the same time. This is not to say that I haven’t tried to listen to music and study at the same time, in fact, I have, and I have found, just as you suggested in your article, that it is easier to perform better academically when listening to classical music; I have found it is easier mainly because it doesn’t have words. However, I have also found that I cannot accurately participate in something academic if I have music playing in the background. I mostly attribute this to the fact that I believe we, as human beings, cannot multitask. In fact, I read a blog post the other day that suggested that multitasking was a myth, and I have to say that I agree with it. I mainly agree with this because on the individual’s blog post, which I have linked you to here if you would like to check it out, the author writes about how our brain is physically incapable of doing two things at the same time. I consider listening to music and trying to logically deal with an academic assignment as doing two things at the same time, and that is why, I, personally don’t think that listening to music while studying benefits you.
One reason that I chose this article to comment on was because of two things: one, I love listening to music and have always wondered if it helps with the studying process, and two, because I have never been able to both study and listen to music at the same time. This is not to say that I haven’t tried to listen to music and study at the same time, in fact, I have, and I have found, just as you suggested in your article, that it is easier to perform better academically when listening to classical music; I have found it is easier mainly because it doesn’t have words. However, I have also found that I cannot accurately participate in something academic if I have music playing in the background. I mostly attribute this to the fact that I believe we, as human beings, cannot multitask. In fact, I read a blog post the other day that suggested that multitasking was a myth, and I have to say that I agree with it. I mainly agree with this because on the individual’s blog post, which I have linked you to <a href="http://sites.psu.edu/siowfa16/2016/09/13/multitasking-youre-wrong-2/"here if you would like to check it out, the author writes about how our brain is physically incapable of doing two things at the same time. I consider listening to music and trying to logically deal with an academic assignment as doing two things at the same time, and that is why, I, personally don’t think that listening to music while studying benefits you.
This is coincidental because my roommate was studying for hours while simultaneously complaining that she was not retaining any information. Two hours into studying she decided to play music and then exclaimed that it was significantly helping. To me, music only distracts me and leaves me wandering further away from anything I’m supposed to be doing. However, the research discussed above does make sense and I suppose that is why my roommate benefits from listening to music while studying.
That’s a really interesting blog because I always try to concentrate in silence while doing work. I used to listen to music with head phones while I worked but I guess I should try putting some on in the background. I know if anything else is going on I tend to get distracted easily.
To each their own I guess. All the studies I discussed were randomized, so I looked at the data as a whole. I assume some test takers performed better in complete silence than with music. If you feel like giving music a chance, I’ve personally found that light jazz helps me the best when I study. Obviously steer away from genres like screamo, death metal, and hard rap when studying. All contain loud noises and changes in pitch that might throw your focus. Good luck with your future studying.