Santa Susana High School

Music and Mood

Senior Project Research Paper

Sara Gossom
CP English 12- Period 3
Mr. White
20 November 2015
Introduction
Music has always been a big part of my life. I find love and happiness in the music I
surround myself with, and sometimes even find other emotions as well. For my senior project, I

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want to create an experiment to see how different kinds of music can affect mood. I plan to study
music therapy when I am older, and I thought that a senior project involving both music and
psychology would be a great way to get familiar with the subject before college. Before I
perform my experiment, there are many areas I need to research. In order for my experiment to
be successful, I need to learn how to create the experiment itself, and research different
experiments done to get an idea of what I should be looking for and what I should expect. I
should also research the effects of music on the brain to broaden my understanding of the results
I find in my experiment. Based off of the information I gather about music cognition, I will need
to find two pieces of music to use, and the subjects to perform the experiment with. Finally, I
will need to figure out how I will organize and perform my experiment, keeping all other aspects
of my research in mind.
Music therapy is a very important psychological field. I have developed a very strong
relationship with music, and I would love to be able to give others the opportunity to do so as
well. This is why Ive decided to do this senior project. I want to show myself and others that
music can easily improve a persons mood, and even help them with more long term
psychological problems. I also want to prove to myself that music therapy could be the right field
for me to study.

Research
Music therapy is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to
accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship . It can be used to relieve
patients of symptoms of many different neurological disorders and conditions including

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dementia, MS, and even strokes (Ragilo, Attardo, and Rollino). Another example of how music
therapy can help patients is PTSD sufferers. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs supported a
study performed in late 2010 to assess the effectiveness of music therapy on relieving PTSD
symptoms . A group of 40 Veterans who suffered from PTSD were all enrolled in individual
lessons, and group sessions for six weeks. They were also given their own guitars and sheet
music to keep after the study ended. The results of the study were incredibly positive. PTSD
symptoms were significantly relieved. Many of the Veterans also found that they had reduced
depression symptoms and [improved] health-related quality of life (Music Therapy
Program).
Familiarizing oneself with the steps and processes necessary to create a successful
experiment is the first step towards the goal. Nothing can be tested if there is nothing to support
what is being tested. The type of experiment The type of experiment being used for this project is
called a field experiment. Field experiments are done in an environment that participants have
familiarized themselves with, such as a classroom (McLeod, 2012). These experiments tend to
involve different variables, like music and photos (Horowitz, 2012). Like all types of
experiments, field experiments have both strengths and weaknesses. One strength is that
behaviors will reflect more on real life due to the setting. This allows the information gathered
about the participants to be more legitimate and realistic. A weakness of a field experiment is that
there is less control over other variables that could influence peoples opinions and moods
(McLeod, 2012). For example, the room may be too cold, or some people may hear the music
much louder than others.
Although there are downsides to a field experiment, it is the best choice for this particular
study. In a similar study done by Sonoma State University, eighty-one students were split into

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groups to watch a film with uplifting music, sad music, or no music at all. The experiment was
performed in an unfamiliar, empty room with only a tv and a couch (Vella et al., 103). Because
the experiment was not performed in a place that the students were accustomed to, their anxiety
levels could have been increased before the experiment was done. This could have exaggerated
the difference in the measurements taken before and after the film was watched.
Experiments like this one have been done many times before in many different ways.
Some use photos, some use films, and some simply use music (Horowitz, 2012). The one
performed by Sonoma State, used music to exaggerate different feelings throughout a film. The
different genres used gave the students watching the film different feelings and interpretations of
the film (Vella et al., 103). This is because the brain uses music imagery to interpret what it is
hearing. The imagery is translated into what they see on the screen (Zatorre, 7). Other examples
of experiments similar to my own include one that used Japanese noise music and classical
music to show that music can alter moral judgements (Horowitz, 2012). Another investigated
the mood changes affiliated with classical, pop, and metal music. Because so many similar
experiments have been done, some results can be predicted.
The brain can interpret music in many different ways, but one thing seems clear: certain
genres affect mood in certain ways. In the experiment using Japanese noise music and classical
music, the participants were split into three groups. One listened to the noise music, one
listened to the classical music, and one listened to nothing. Afterwards, all participants were
shown different photos including a man cutting in front of cars . It was found that the participants
that listened to noise music were more inclined to find the wrong in each scenario. The ones
who listened to happy music were more inclined to find the good in each scenario. In conclusion,
this study showed that different kinds of music can affect how you perceive different situations

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put in front of you (Horowitz, 2012). A similar experiment performed used pop, classical, and
metal music. It was found that pop and classical music tends to support positive moods, while
metal music tends to introduce negative moods (Rea, MacDonald, and Carnes, 1).
These experiments have provided useful information for many organizations and
companies. Healthychildren.org found that negative changes in your mood can affect multiple
aspects of your life. Negative moods can cause stress leading to problems focusing and sleeping,
but music that creates happy, positive moods can help eliminate these problems. Music can be so
effective in helping reduce anxiety that it is used in multiple lines of work, including dental, and
medical, to reduce fear and worry (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2015). According to
Timothy Justus and Jamshed Bharucha of Berkeley and Dartmouth College, this all has to do
with how the brain processes the music it hears. Over time, a persons neural structure is
changed throughout evolution to adapt to how our society has shaped our culture (Justice, and
Bharucha, 456). As music becomes more important in our worlds, it becomes more important to
us. We may use it to feel happier, brighter, or just to feel anything at all (American Academy of
Pediatrics, 2015). We may all interpret music slightly differently, simply because learning about
the mechanics of music can result in different representations of music in the brain, but the
overall messages and feelings are the same worldwide (Justice, and Bharucha, 456).
Application
With all of this information about these experiments in mind, I need to choose the music I
will use of my own study. There are pros and cons to almost anything I choose, so I will need to
choose my songs carefully. Some songs are too well-known, which could compromise how
people feel about the music. If I wanted to, I could simplify the choices I make to simple chord
progressions. I could choose instrumental pieces in minor and major keys, but my mentor had

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some more interesting ideas. My mentor, Angel Belden, is a Psychology teacher at Pierce
college. She suggested I use two songs sung by the same artist; one would be acoustic and one
would be a full instrumental. Choosing the same piece done in different ways will help eliminate
some variables that could compromise my results. This may be the best option for the
experiment I plan to do.
As for subjects, I plan to use some of Angels students. I met with Angel to discuss when,
where, and how we would collect our data. We decided we would create a consent form at our
next meeting, and that I would have my music choices by then. We will perform the experiment
over Thanksgiving break during a few of Angels classes. The students that participate will get
extra credit in their class. If not enough students participate, we will have to do more studies
after the break. The students that do participate will be split into groups randomly for the study.
To deliver the music, I will buy high-quality speakers and place them around the room. I
will play the song chosen for that group of people and give them the questions they need to
answer. Before the experiment is performed, I may collect simple data from the participants to
see what kind of group is participating. I will find out their age, gender, and which day they will
participate on, to have a broadened understanding of who I am testing. The experiment itself
should go smoothly, and I am very excited to see the outcome.
I will use two versions of the song Relax My Beloved by Alex Clare. One will be the
original iTunes recording of the song, and the other will be an unplugged version. I will perform
the experiment on November 23rd and 25th at Pierce College. My next meeting with Angel is on
November 3rd, and at our meeting we will have our state affect measurement, and create and
finalize our consent form and demographic questions for the participants. Overall, I am looking
forward to the study, and I cant wait to see how my findings compare to the ones I researched.

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Work Cited

1. Ragilo, Alfredo, Attardo, Lapo, and Giulia Rollino. "Effects of Music and Music Therapy
on Mood in Neurological Patients." US National Library of Medicine. N.p., 22
Mar. 2015. Web. 13 Sept. 2015.
2. Rea, Christopher, MacDonald, Pamelyn, and Gwen Carnes. Listening to Classical, Pop,
and Metal Music: An Investigation of Mood. Emporia State Research Studies.
46.1 (2010): 1-3. Web. 14 Sept. 2015.
3. Music Therapy Program Helps Relieve PTSD Symptoms. U.S. Department of Veteran
Affairs. 20 Jan. 2014. Web. 13 Sept. 2015.

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4. American Academy of Pediatrics. Music and Mood. Healthychildren.org. 2015. Web.

16 Sept. 2015.
5. Vella, Elizabeth J., et al. The Effects of Music on Mood and Perception of a Visual
Stimulus. PSI CHI Journal of Undergraduate Research. 4.3 (1999): 101-105.
Web. 15 Sept. 2015.
6.

Altenmller EO. How Many Music Centers are in the Brain?. Annals of the New York
Academy of Science. 930 (2001, June): 273-280. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.

7.

Zatorre, RJ. Music and the Brain. Annals of the New York Academy of Science. 999
(2003, Nov): 4-14. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.

8. McLeod, Saul. Experimental Method. Simply Psychology. 2012. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.
9. Horowitz, Eric. How Music Can Alter Moral Judgements. Peer-reviewed By My
Neurons. (Blog). 23 Sept. 2012. Web. 17 Sept 2015.
10. Justice, Timothy C. and Jamshed J. Bharucha. Music Perception and Cognition. in
Yantis, S. and H. Pashler (eds.). Steven Handbook of Experimental Psychology,
Volume 1: Sensation and Perception. Third Edition. New York: Wiley. 2002. pp.
453-492. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.