Playing Mozart's Music to Infants Boosts Their Intelligence - Research Paper Example

?The Mozart Effect on Infant’s Intellectual Development Music has been known to be a balm to soothe the weary soul. Listening to music can be relaxing as an individual listens to it and helps rejuvenate one’s energy. Classical music has also been known to have the same effect, which is why some people play it in the background while they work so that their stress levels are kept down. Such hype about classical music has led others to believe the “Mozart effect”, which was a phenomenon propagated by a study conducted by Frances Rauscher and his associates at the University of California-Irvine in 1993 (Rauscher & Shaw, 1998). The controversial study found that college students performed much better on a test after listening to Mozart’s Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major due to the enhancement of their spatial-temporal reasoning. Enterprising groups have taken advantage of the controversy created from Rauscher’s study, selling the idea that Mozart’s music can make one smarter. Hence, production, marketing and consumption of product lines, educational programs featuring Mozart’s music were targeted towards parents of young children. This is the market that holds high hopes of the Mozart effect leaving its influence on their children’s cognitive development (Coff, 2005). The publicized effect of Mozart’s music on infants is the provision of sensory stimulation that enhances their developing central nervous system (de l’Etoile, 2008). The way that music and spatial imaging are processed in the infant’s brain may result in the said enhancement that follows Mozart’s music listening sessions that last for ten minutes (Jenkens, 2001). The effects observed in the contentious study of Rauscher were never replicated in other studies, leading other scholars to cast doubts about its validity (Busse, 2010). Other researchers have attributed the “Mozart Effect” as a result of heightened arousal from listening to music before the test, and no clear consensus between these researchers have been reached regarding the effects of music on memory and learning (Busse, 2010). However, research has yielded evidence of music’s calming effect on the brain. Cromie (2001) reports that studies have shown that premature babies in intensive care units gain weight faster when exposed to soothing background music. Mark Tramo, a musician, composer and neuroscientist has studied music’s effect on the brain and its practical applications (Cromie, 2001). He states that there have been studies that have shown that music played in nursing homes during meal times kept patients with Alzheimer’s disease be calmer and less argumentative with others. Music was also reported to decrease blood pressure and heart rate (Busse, 2010). Sweeney (2012) reports that the Mozart effect has been debunked by researchers from the Appalachian State University. They claimed that the original study was done on college students and not on babies. The researchers found that classical music did not significantly affect student performance on tests. Even Rauscher admitted that there was no basis on reality that classical music can cure health problems and make babies smarter however, he still claimed that it can help prime the brain to manage mathematical problems (Sweeney, 2012). Reporting results of a controversial study and milking it to be generalized to a gamut of practical applications just to sell a new idea may be a viable business strategy but not a good move for science. Selling a myth disguised as a remarkable phenomenon may be harmful to some people as their hopes are needlessly raised. Eventually, frustration may set in if and when such hopes are dashed, earning scientific research a bad reputation. The Mozart effect has been advertised as effective in making infants and toddlers grow up smarter than their peers who have not been exposed to such music. This premise was based on a study that was conducted on a different population, college students, and generalizing the results to infants and toddlers is just not appropriate nor ethical to endorse. Parents who only wanted the best for their children held on to anything they believed would help them raise children who were healthier and more intelligent than they were. Young and new parents, especially, want to be in on the latest trends so they shop for the newest toys, enroll their children in trendy educational programs and do just about anything to keep their children updated and upgraded. They are well-informed about the latest buzz about parenting and child development. The Mozart effect was one myth that a good number of parents subscribed to. Apart from the belief that specific musical toys, videos, software, etc. facilitate their children’s cognitive development, the “use it or lose it” theory was also very popular among parents. This theory contends that certain areas of the brain open up during infancy, toddlerhood or early childhood and if these are not ably stimulated, then it closes forever (Johnson, 2012). Classical music is helpful in developing children’s skills at these stages and prolonged exposure to such music helps keep them focused . In any case, the demystified Mozart effect has encouraged more people to verify its truthfulness through further research and has contributed in triggering parents’ interest in child development theories. If this myth has not been successful in making children smarter, it has been successful in spreading interest and love for music among parents and their children. If they do it right, they will eventually be successful in raising musically-smart children. References Busse, M. (2010) Effects of Music on the Human Brain, Retrieved on July 9, 2012 from http://www.livestrong.com/article/166062-effects-of-music-on-the-human-brain/ Coff, R. (2005) The Mozart Effect, Online Resources on Music/Brain Research, Retrieved on July 9, 2012 from http://parenting-baby.com/Parenting-Baby-Music-Research/Music-Research.html Cromie, W.J. (2001) Music on the brain: Researchers explore the biology of music, Harvard Gazette Archives, Retrieved on July 9, 2012 from http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2001/03.22/04-music.html De l’Etoile, S.(2008) Teaching the Youngest Learners: Musical Experiences for Infants, General Music Today, Vol. 22, pp. 35-37. Jenkens, J.S. (2001) The Mozart Effect, Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Vol. 94, Issue 4, pp. 170-172 Johnson, H.M. (2012) Why Babies Love Music, Retrived on July 9, 2012 from http://www.parents.com/baby/development/intellectual/why-babies-love-music/ Rausher, F.H. & Shaw, G.L. (1998) Key Components of the Mozart Effect, Perceptual and Motor Skills, Vol. 86, pp. 835-841 Sweeney, D. (2012) The Mozart effect: Classical music and your baby’s brain, Retrieved on July 9, 2012 from http://www.babycenter.com/0_the-mozart-effect-classical- music-and-your-babys-brain_9308.bc Read More