Document Type
Conference Paper
Publication Date
2004
Publication Source
Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society
Abstract
Poster session presented at the meeting of the Psychonomic Society. Two groups of college students participated as listeners or non-listeners, based on whether or not they preferred background music while working or studying. Both groups were trained according to standardized memory search and unstable motor tracking task protocols. Testing consisted of multiple trials at varying levels of difficulty with and without familiar background music. Background music enhanced motor tracking, particularly when the task was challenging. In contrast, background music disrupted aspects of working memory. There were no differences between listeners and non-listeners. The results suggest that, regardless of an individual’s predilection, familiar background music can affect that individual’s performance. The specific effect, whether enhancing or disrupting, may reflect the similarity between the task demands and certain objective characteristics of the music.
Document Version
Published Version
Peer Reviewed
yes
Keywords
Background Music, Working Memory, Motor Tracking
eCommons Citation
Polzella, Donald J. and Schoeling, Scott, "Effects of familiar background music on working memory and motor tracking" (2004). Psychology Faculty Publications. 78.
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/psy_fac_pub/78
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