The Effect of Mozarts Music on Short-Term Memory - Essay Example

The Effect of Mozart's Music on Short Term Memory An Exploratory Research Name: Subject: Roll No: Class: Teacher: April 14, 2008 University Abstract This research study attempts to evaluate the effectiveness off Mozart effect on the state of memory in human beings. Apart from the effect on memory, the paper also attempts to track the upshot on the general healing procedure and behavior of the human body. Research has been conducted by organizing the study sample into three groups. The first group was subjected to 2 minutes sessions of Mozart's music. On the other hand, the second group was subjected to 2 minute sessions of rock music i.e." the fallen" by Franz Ferdinand. The third group was the control group and was subjected to no music at all. The first group was tested for the alternative hypothesis and was reported to demonstrate a higher level of success result on the memory test scores whereas the members of the second group lagged behind in performing well on the memory test scores. However, in addition to this, the positive effect of rock music has been tracked and noticed which has then been incorporated and discussed in the study. Introduction Definition/Meaning and Concept of the Study The Mozart's effect was first coined by Alfred Tomatis who observed that Mozart's music created the greatest healing effect on human body. His proposition was that listening to the composition of Mozart can enhance the general intellect level in human beings along with sharpening of the spatial understanding skills and capabilities. Relationship of Topic with Psychology For quite some time, the discipline of mind that is psychology has developed independently by divorcing itself from the science of the brain networking and its functioning, that is neuroscience. Psychologists have always been interested in our mental functioning and their capacities with special interest and focus on how we learn, remember, and imagine. The interest of neuroscientists in the development and functioning of brain has led to the furthering of studies which now encompass our mental software from the brain along with the working and performance of our neural hardware. Don Campbell in his book The Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind and Unlock the Creative Spirit has stressed on the positive effects on the vocal, emotional and general skills related to spatial intelligence in direct correlation with Mozart's effect. In addition, he has talked about the outcomes on improved concentration and memory, enhanced creative progression of the right-brain and strengthening in common intuitive thinking skills. Background Information on the Topic It is believed that Mozart's music serves as a carrier, in that we use its beat or melody to help encode the content for relaxation and elation. Later on Rauscher, K.Y. and Shaw (1993) carried out an experiment on the basis of 'Mozart's effect', called the Music and Spatial Task Performance. It was found that the participants who had listened to Mozart's music scored 8-9 point higher as compared to those who either listened to another piece of music or listened to nothing at all. The piece of music used for this study was Mozart's 'Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, K448'.Campbell (1997) further supported the study. However, this study was criticized by Steele (1999) who had tried to replicate the original study but failed to find any improvements Creation of Essential Question The essential question would be, that is there any presence of a positive cause and effect relationship on the memory status of the students who listen to Mozart's music, as it is propagated in the theory of Mozart's effect. Hypothesis The hypothesis that is to be tested for this study is, "Listening to Mozart's music has no effect on human memory" Review of Literature William Forde Thompson, E. Glenn Schellenberg, Gabriela Husain (2001) have defined the famous "Mozart effect" and attempted to trace the effect of Mozart's music on the general spatial capabilities of people. Participants we re made to listen to different compositions. One was Mozart's music while the other one was another random piece. Apart form the measurement of the test performance eon the quizzes given the people included in the study sample, the group was also significantly monitored for the general capabilities and changes in their mood, per person response, and arousal. Results s reported a positive significant relationship for the test performance of people who were made to listen to Mozart's music. Kenneth M. Steele, Karen E. Bass, Melissa D. Crook (1999) traced the effect on the spatial reasoning after giving exposure to the people towards Mozart's sonata. The test was conducted in accordance with the result reports base don the modules of seven laboratories. Out of seven, two laboratories confirmed to the presence of significant relationship of Mozart's effect. However, the experiment on a whole did not produce any relevant statistical significance of a high level that would report a positivistic consequence of the Mozart's effect on the spatial understanding of the people included in the study sample. Methodology Definition of Variables The variables used for this research study are as follows: Observer: Author and .. Study Subjects: Opportunity sample (Those who were available at the time of the experiment). Mal adjusted behavior treated: Memory Independent variable: 'Had/had not listened to the music'. Dependent variables: Performance in memory test. Techniques applied: Laboratory study, using independent group design (prevent order effect). Materials: 'Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, K448', 1 list of numbers contained 15 of 2-digits numbers (chosen by random). Procedures: 36 participants will be divided into 3 groups: The first 12 will comprise the experimental group. The next 12 would fall into the experimental group, tested for rock music. The last group of 12 students comprises the control group which is subjected to no music at all. For the experimental group, they will be listening to 'Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, K448' for 2 minutes, and will then be given a list of alphabets. They will have 30 seconds to memorize the alphabets, and then will be asked to write down the alphabets afterwards. The second experimental group for rock music will be listening to" the fallen" by Franz Ferdinand music for 2 minutes. The control group will do the same, except that the 'listening to music' will be changed to silence for 2 minutes. Description of Subjects The study sample consists of a group of thirty six people, who were subjected to specific sessions of Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major, K448' for 2 minutes. Sixteen of the students used for the study were males, while twenty of them were females. The minimum age recorded was 19.1 years, whereas the maximum age calculated was 22.2 years. For the sake of comparison, the total number of subjects was divided into three groups. Group A (Group subjected to Mozart's music): The first group consisted of ten males and two females. Group A was subjected to family therapy sessions and hence was tested for affect of family therapy. Group B (Group subjected to rock music): The second group consisted of six males and six of the students were females. Group C (Control group): The third group consisted of twelve females. Setting The study sample of the group sample was selected from.. Data Collection Instruments and Data Collection Procedures Study subjects were observed and evaluated on the basis of a number of 20 sessions of Mozart's Sonata (2 minute sessions). Examination of Study Analysis Procedure The tabulation of results for this research study is done based on the following observations: Improvement on the memory test score Estimation and evaluation of effectiveness in communication and general behavior General state of peace and calm Changes in assorted behavioral patterns Limitations: Validity and Reliability The limitations of this research paper are as follows: The study sample is too small, which averts the researcher to extent the study results for drafting detailed analysis. The composition of both groups is heterogeneous i.e. Group A consists of two female and ten male subjects, whereas Group B consists of all female subjects. Hence, the results may tend to be biased in terms of gender related factors. Statement of the Alternative Hypothesis The null hypothesis for the study would be; "Students who have listened to Mozart's music will perform better in memory test than those who have not." Results and Discussions Observation and Analysis (ANOVA) Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Between Groups 84.722 2 42.361 6.437 .004 Within Groups 217.167 33 6.581 Total 301.889 35 Post Hoc Tests Observation and Analysis (Multiple Comparisons) (I) condition (J) condition Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error Sig. 95% Confidence Interval Lower Bound Upper Bound 1 2 -1.66667 1.04728 .121 -3.7974 .4640 3 2.08333 1.04728 .055 -.0474 4.2140 2 1 1.66667 1.04728 .121 -.4640 3.7974 3 3.75000(*) 1.04728 .001 1.6193 5.8807 3 1 -2.08333 1.04728 .055 -4.2140 .0474 2 -3.75000(*) 1.04728 .001 -5.8807 -1.6193 * The mean difference is significant at the .05 level. Interpretation(s) Condition 1: Group A (Mozart Group) Condition 2: Group B (Rock Music Group) Condition 3: Group C (No Music Group) f stats = 6.437: The f stats elaborates the significance of the hypothesis that listening to Mozart's music has a positive effect on the memory for the experiential Group A . The mean for Group A is tabulated to be between -1.66667 and 2.08333 with the standard deviations at 1.04728 and 1.04728 respectively. The mean for Group B is tabulated to be between1.66667 and 3.75000 with the standard deviations at 1.04728 and 1.04728 respectively. The mean for Group C is tabulated to be between -2.08333 and -3.75000 with the standard deviations at 1.04728 and 1.04728 respectively. Reflections(s) The above results and tabulated calculations show that there is a significant positive trend noticed in case of the memory of the students who were subjected to Mozart's musical session for a period of 2 minutes daily for a course of 20 session days. Other than the, tabulated results also reveal that there was a general enhanced level of performance noticed in case of Group B who were subjected to the rock music. However, this effect can be possibly explained by the fact that there is a general tendency in teenagers and youngsters to relate and adapt themselves to the rock music. Therefore this genre of music induces feelings of elation and excitement in them, which can be translated as a factor relating to the enhanced levels of performance. Other than this, a further limitation for the above results and analysis could be the gender biasness as the control group only consisted of female populace. Another factor that could be categorized as bounding the results would be the fact that majority of the students in the study samples were of Asian origin. This fact could be accounted to explain a general low level of performance on the alphabetical tests. Apart from this, the recency and primary effects contribute a lot in the general test performance of an average student in any kind of memorial quiz. The recency effect means that the recently looked up or examined items have a more chance of being remembered by the students. On the other hand, the primary effect states that the first few things, items or subjects in any area are remembered much better by an average individual. Conclusions The Mozart's effect and its effective implications have been into discussion for quite a while. Though, the general level of understanding does accept it as a plausible claim of statement. But still, there are many like Kenneth M. Steele, Karen E. Bass, Melissa D. Crook (1999) who assert that the Mozart's effect is only an intellectual illusion that does not have significant trails in reality. However, the results of this study positively accord with the study carried out by William Forde Thompson, E. Glenn Schellenberg, Gabriela Husain (2001), and proves highly significant results that track down the positive influence of Mozart's music on the learning capabilities of human beings with special reference eon the memory enhancement. References Don Campbell. (1997)The Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind and Unlock the Creative Spirit. Kenneth M. Steele, Karen E. Bass, Melissa D. Crook (1999) The Mystery of the Mozart Effect: Failure to Replicate Psychological Science 10 (4) William Forde Thompson, E. Glenn Schellenberg, Gabriela Husain (2001) Arousal, Mood, and the Mozart Effect Psychological Science 12 (3) Read More