Many streaming platforms offer ‘functional playlists’, often with calm soundscapes designed to boost productivity while working. However, new research suggests “groovier” music may be a better choice to improve brainpower.
A study, completed at New York University and published in the academic journal PLOS One, involved 280 participants split into four groups. Each group listened to different ‘auditory backdrops’ – office noise, pop music, deep focus and work flow.
“The ‘work flow’ music we tested was characterised by strong rhythm with simple tonality, broadly distributed spectral energy below ~6000 Hz, and moderate dynamism,” the study’s authors explain. “By contrast, the ‘deep focus’ music that we tested was more minimalistic, with similarly simple tonality, but weaker rhythm, lower and more restricted spectral energy, and more reserved dynamism.”
These participants completed a mood questionnaire before and after the study and were given a “flanker task” to complete while listening to music. This involved repeatedly saying which way an arrow is pointing when surrounded by other symbols, and was designed to measure attention levels and mental processing.
The results showed the work flow music had a significant improvement on mood after the flanker task, and participants responded to the task more quickly over time while listening.
“There was a correlation between how much their mood improved and how fast they were providing correct answers.” Senior study author Pablo Ripollés summarises. “This is just a first study, but we hypothesise that the work flow music had an effect on both mood and speed of [mental] processing because it was liked and groovy at the same time.”
Ripollés also suggested that despite pop music’s potential to improve mood via groove, the lyrics and sudden melody changes may instead be distracting and harm cognitive performance as a result.
Ultimately, while calming, minimalist playlists have become a staple for productivity, new research suggests “groovier” music with stronger rhythms could enhance cognitive performance and mood. By improving focus and boosting mood, this study highlights the potential of upbeat, rhythmic music in optimising how we work and study.
Might it be time to rethink our go-to playlists for better concentration and motivation?
