The current and previous evidence are discussed in light of existing theories. Although the results confirmed highly diverse strategies among individuals regarding when, how often, why and what type of BGM is used, we found several general tendencies: people tend to use less BGM when engaged in more difficult tasks, they become less critical about the type of BGM when engaged in easier tasks, and there is a negative correlation between the frequency of BGM and age, indicating that younger generations tend to use more BGM than older adults. Specifically, the frequency of BGM usage, preferred music types, beliefs about the scientific evidence on BGM, and individual characteristics, such as age, extraversion and musical background were investigated.

Here, we explored how people use BGM while optimally performing various cognitive tasks in everyday life, such as reading, writing, memorizing, and critical thinking. However, the evidence is not converging: experimental studies show mixed results depending on the task, the type of music used and individual characteristics. The effect of background music (BGM) on cognitive task performance is a popular topic. In comparison to those who did not study with music, subjects who typically studied with music were more extraverted as assessed by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, reported greater skills in focusing attention during distracting situations on the Differential Attentional Processes Inventory, and reported less sensitivity to noise in general on the Weinstein Noise Sensitivity Scale. Extraversion was not a significant covariate of performance. On the Object-Number Test those who typically did not study with music showed deterioration across conditions (no music > instrumental > vocal), while those who typically studied with music performed no better in the no music condition than either music condition. Both vocal music and instrumental music disturbed performance more than no music on the Object-Number Test (associative learning and long-term memory), but this was moderated by studying preference. Vocal music disrupted performance significantly more than instrumental music on the Maze Tracing Speed (scanning speed) and Deciphering of Languages (logical reasoning) tests. Three timed visuospatial and verbal tests were used. Cognitive performance as a function of 75 dB vocal or instrumental music was investigated in 61 university students.

Instrumenta vocalia