Scientific study tip: Background music
Don't listen to music when studying. Work in silence or listen to 'white noise'. Listen to happy music in your study breaks.
The Mozart effect
The Mozart effect is a temporary improvement of spatial reasoning after listening to Mozart. It was discovered by Frances Rauscher and her colleages, and gained popularity two decades ago. They had students listen to Mozart's Sonata for Two Piano's in D Major, and then perform a test of spatial reasoning. These students performed better afterwards than students who listened to a relaxation tape or those who did the test in silence.
This sounds cool and all. Just put on some Mozart and ace that quiz, right? Not really.
First of all, the effect of listening to Mozart only lasted for 10-15 minutes, and the effects were actually quite small.
Second, this effect only occurs when listening to happy melodies, but not when listening to sad melodies. This was because happy melodies made students feel more happy and calm. So while the Sonata for Two Piano's in D Major was an excellent choice, Mozart's Fugue in C Minor for Two Keyboards might not have the same effect.
Third, and most importantly, the effect only occurs when listening to music BEFORE performing a cognitive task, not WHILE doing so.
Music disrupts
Several experiments played different kinds of music to people while they performed cognitive tests (such as studying exam materials, spatial reasoning tests). These experiments showed that music impairs performance. More findings:
Introverts were more impaired than extraverts.
Music with lyrics is much more disruptive than instrumental music.
Rock music is more disruptive than, say, classical operas.
It doesn't matter whether you pay attention to the music or not.
The impairment still occurs if you don't understand the language.
Silence and white noise are similar, although on the long term (think: your exam) silence may have a more positive effect.
So what can we learn from this?
Don't listen to music while you're studying. If you can't stand the silence, turn on some white noise. Great examples are coffee shop sounds, weather sounds, or animal sounds (see the links below).
Listen to (happy classical) music during your study breaks. This can reduce your stress levels, boost your mood, and in turn improve your focus and mental health.
Happy, healthy studying!
Links:
https://coffitivity.com/ : creates the ambiance of several coffee shops
https://www.rainymood.com/ : the sound of rain with the occasional thunder
https://www.moodil.com/ : lets you create your own mix of sounds
https://mynoise.net/ : another great sound generator, try the fireplace one
Sources:
Chabris, C. F. (1999). Prelude or requiem for the 'Mozart effect'? Nature, 400, 826-827.
Furnham, A., & Bradley, A. (1997). Music while you work: The differential distraction of background music on the cognitive test performance of introverts and extraverts. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 11, 445-455.
LaVoie, J. C. & Collins, B. R. (1975). Effects of youth culture music on high school students' academic performance. Jounral of Youth and Adolescence, 4, 57-65.
Rauscher, F. H., Shaw, G.L., & Ky, K. N. (1993). Music and spatial task performance. Nature, 365, 611.
Salamé, P., & Baddeley, A. (1989). Effects of background music on phonological short-term memory. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 41, 107-122.
Thompson, W. F., Schellenberg, E. G., & Husain, G. (2001). Arousal, mood, and the Mozart effect. Psychological Science, 12, 248-251.