Music While Studying: Yay or Nay?
Distracting us from the exhaustion of workouts. Being a method of expressing oneself. These are some ways students use music in their daily lives. But how does it factor into one of the most relevant activities for us students — studying? Today, we seek to explore whether music is a bane or a boon in aiding our learning, as well as how students incorporate it into studying.
The numbers Mason, what do they mean?
How much music does one listen to daily? In 2017, Spotify revealed that a suprising 1 in 2 Singaporeans used the music streaming app. In that year alone, they announced that Singaporeans streamed at least 10 billion minutes of music.
Singaporeans spent an average of 152 minutes per day on the app, totaling a whopping 1/12th of a day spent listening to music. This statistic has surely increased since 2017, with the COVID-19 pandemic no doubt boosting the numbers.
We can see this statistic realised in our daily lives. Whether it be listening to tunes through our earpieces, as ambient music through speakers, with friends, or alone, everyone has different ways to enjoy music.
In a poll posted on Instagram and Telegram, we surveyed students on whether they listened to music while studying, as well as their preference of music while studying. Is this a bane or boon? This is the response yielded from the poll:
What do we like to listen to?
What exactly do students listen to while studying? Could it be the soothing beats of lofi music, the sonorous tones of classical, or maybe even rap that helps keep them awake and motivated during the long grind of study sessions?
In the poll, we also surveyed students on their personal preferences for music choice while studying. Here are some of the popular responses:
What does the research say?
Given the results above, one might wonder, “is music really aiding me in my studies, or could it be impeding me instead?”
One would expect that fast-paced music would be detrimental for focus, while slow, soothing music helps with concentration — but surprisingly, that is not entirely the case! The research is in, and as it turns out, different genres of music serve different study needs.
How does calm music help?
We start with a tame revelation — studies show that background music may enhance performance in cognitive tasks. This background music includes the likes of lofi, soft jazz, and generic “music for studying/concentration” playlists.
In more recent research, it was suggested that whether or not music improves cognitive function depends on whether the music first improves a person’s emotional state. This suggests that for someone to benefit from the music, they have to first enjoy what they are listening to.
How does upbeat music help?
In a slightly surprising twist, Rap was found to aid in reducing anxiety and stress while studying. Research by Cambridge University showed that hip-hop music provided an uplifting effect on its listeners, which in turn improved their mental health. Perhaps listening to Eminem’s lines and bars before a paper is not too bad an idea after all!
Does music always help?
It is true that the majority of the time music does help in studying. It does so by giving students motivation to push on and even complete work more efficiently. However, there do remain cases where music may instead be detrimental to our study sessions.
While music temporarily helps one better commit things to memory, some may find it difficult to recall said content when taking a test in a silent location. Information recall has been proven to be more effective when it is done in a similar environment like the one it was memorised in.
How does classical music help?
Finally, ending off a study session with classical music has been proven to be beneficial in getting some good shut-eye after cramming one’s head with information for hours. Classical music has been shown to help alleviate insomnia in college students. If you have not tried this, it wouldn’t hurt to give Bach, Mozart, or Debussy a shot.
What about other sounds?
Extending from the topic of music, we can explore the other sounds that some may find beneficial to studying. This includes background sounds such as tactile keyboard typing, gentle pitter-patter of rain, and the lively crackle of a fireplace — the list goes on.
Is setting the ambience for one’s study session as important as the type of music one listens to while studying? The answer is not as clear-cut as you might think.
One man’s meat is another man’s poison; Research has shown that the answer to whether one can benefit from studying while listening to background sounds lies in whether one is introverted or extroverted. Introverts are more likely to be distracted from their task at hand in noisy environments while extroverts are more likely to be distracted from their task at hand in complete silence.
The background noise’s ability to distract someone is also due to its syncopation, which is the measure of which a beat of noise becomes noticeable and potentially annoying. Specific sounds of steady rhythm like the hum of an air conditioner or rain sounds may be soothing, while sounds like the sudden creak of a door or traffic noises are sure to distract.
Thus I would advise you, the reader to try it for yourself, and see if it is your cup of tea or not.
