Experiencing Music: Music's Influence on Emotion and Cognition

Abstract

Music can be used to express emotions, thoughts and feelings. This study explores how music impacts emotions and memory, and whether Emotional Intelligence (EI) and the Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) construct interact with this. Participants were required to listen to five songs varying in emotion and they rated their emotions using the Positive and Negative Affect scale (PANAS) before and after each song. Additionally, EI and sensitivity were measured using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) and the HSP scale, respectively. Research questions included: Are those with a higher or lower emotional intelligence affected more by emotion in music? Does the Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) construct interact with emotional intelligence and emotion in music? Does emotional intelligence and emotion in music significantly impact performance on cognitive tasks? Participants consisted of 52 Tyndale University students aged 18-54. Those with a higher EI felt more positive and negative emotions before any music was presented, and fewer positive emotions after a song which was intended to feel negative. The HSP did not experience significantly higher positive and negative emotions than those who were less sensitive throughout this study. Those who experienced higher positive emotions after the first song generally remembered less words correctly. Additionally, after two songs intended to feel negative, EI and sensitivity interacted to produce significantly different emotional responses between participants. Thus, music seems to have some effect on emotion and memory depending on EI, and the interaction between EI and sensitivity.