Psychology of music preference

Personality The relationship between musical preference and personality has remained a long-standing topic of contention for researchers due to the variability in results and the low-predictive power that personality has demonstrated on music preferences. A meta-analysis conducted by Schäfer and Mehlorn, (2017) of previous studies trying to determine if experience seeking or any of the Big-Five personality traits predicted musical preferences, revealed that the correlation coefficient between music genre and personality traits possessed a magnitude greater than 0.1 in only 6 out of the 30 studies they reviewed. Openness to experience was found to have the strongest correlation with a preference for three musical styles; however, this correlation was still relatively minor. The vast majority of the correlation coefficients were almost zero. In a study conducted in 2020, researchers analyzed data from Spotify users and mapped the Big Five personality traits to different genres, moods, and derived metrics such as the number of playlists, diversity in song choice, and repetition of listening habits. Results showed an increase in correlation. Openness had a positive correlation with atmospheric, reggae, and folk music, while conscientiousness had a negative correlation with rock and "Energizing" songs such as "Happy" by Pharrell Williams. In a study conducted by Brisson and Bianchi (2021), participants were provided a musical taste inventory and asked to rate their musical genre and sub-genre preferences. For example, electronic music is considered a genre and house music is a sub-genre of electronic music. Results indicated a high degree of variance between participant genre and sub-genre preferences. Enjoying one genre or sub-genre within a broader genre category often failed to consistently predict ratings for related genres and sub-genres with another related genre or sub-genre. Ultimately, only two consistent associations between genres and sub-genres were found, calling into question the reliability of musical genres in research. Others used questionnaires to determine personality traits, and then asked participants to rate musical excerpts on scales such as liking, perceived complexity, emotions felt, and more. but each trait is still worth discussing. The personality traits have also been shown to correlate significantly with the emotional effect music has on people. Individual personality differences can help predict the emotional intensity and valence derived from music. Big Five personality traits Openness to experience Of all the traits, openness to experience has been shown to have the greatest effect upon genre preference. In general, those rated high in openness to experience prefer music categorized as more complex and novel, such as classical, jazz, and eclecticism, as well as intense and rebellious music. In the study, reflective and complex genres included classical, blues, jazz, and folk music, while intense and rebellious genres included rock, alternative, and heavy metal music. Sad music has also been theorized to allow for greater experience of aesthetic experiences and beauty. One study had people take a personality test before and after listening to classical music with and without written lyrics in front of them. Music both with and without lyrics showed some effect on people's self-reported personality traits, most significantly in terms of openness to experience, which showed a significant increase. Instead of personality affecting music preference, here classical music altered the assessment of their own personalities and made people assess themselves as more open to experience. Openness to experience is also positively correlated with frequency of intellectual or cognitive use of music, such as analyzing complex musical compositions. Another study found that extroverts liked more types of music compared to those who are introverts. It was found that extroverted individuals preferred popular/rock music compared to introverted individuals. Cheerful music with fast tempos, many melodic themes, and vocals are also preferred by extroverts. Differences can probably be attributed to teaching being a profession more dependent on extroversion. Agreeableness Agreeable individuals preferred upbeat and conventional music. Additionally, listeners with high agreeableness displayed an intense emotional response to music which they had never before listened to. Additionally, neuroticism is positively correlated with emotional use of music. Those who scored high in neuroticism were more likely to report use of music for emotional regulation and experience higher intensity of emotional affect, especially negative emotion. ==Individual and situational influences on musical preferences==

Situations have been shown to influence individual's preferences for certain types of music. Participants in a study from 1996 provided information about what music they would prefer to listen to in given situations, and indicated that the situation greatly determined their musical preferences. For example, melancholic situations called for sad and moody music, while an arousal situation would call for loud, strong rhythm, invigorating music. Gender Women are more likely than men to respond to music in a more emotional way. In a study of personality and gender in preference for exaggerated bass in music, researchers found that men demonstrated more of a preference for bassy music than women. This preference for bassy music is also correlated with antisocial and borderline personalities. Culture Research has shown culture can influence musical preferences. Humans tend to enjoy culturally similar music more than culturally atypical music. In a study conducted by McDermott and Schultz (2016), participants from three regions in Bolivia (La Paz, San Borja, and Santa Maria) and the United States were evaluated for differences in music preferences. A study on cross-cultural music memory was conducted by Demorest and Morrison (2016). In the study, Western participants were played six musical excerpts. Three of the excerpts were from Turkish classical music, and the other three were from Western classical music. The music was presented in three different musical contexts (original, monophonic and isochronous).Once all of the excerpts were played, participants received a memory test. The memory test results indicate that participant memory was consistently better at recalling in-cultural music than unfamiliar music. There is also evidence that preferences and opinions toward music can change with age. In a Canadian study concerning how adolescent music preferences relate to personality, researchers found that adolescents who preferred heavy music demonstrated low self-esteem, higher levels of discomfort within the family, and tended to feel rejected by others. Adolescents who preferred light music were preoccupied with doing the proper thing, and had difficulty balancing independence with dependence. Adolescents who had eclectic music preferences had less difficulty negotiating adolescence, and were flexible using music according to mood and particular needs at the time. Self views Music preferences can also be influenced by how the individual wants to be perceived, especially in males. While their findings were inconclusive, it created a research basis for later cases. Music is a way similar to diet and physique to outwardly express internal characteristics. Rentfrow and Gosling found through their study of the seven domains that for many, music was placed quite high in the rankings. Depression also impacts perceptions and emotional responses generated from music. Depressed individuals rate their music-associated episodic memories lower than non-depressed individuals. Additionally, the value people put on music and frequency of listening affects their reactions to it. If people listen to a certain type of music and add emotional experience to songs or a genre in general, this increases the likelihood of enjoying the music and being emotionally affected by it. Body movement can create either positive or negative feelings towards music depending on if the movement is associated with a positive or negative affective state. A study conducted by Weigelt and Walther (2011) demonstrated that performing a positive physical movement while listening to a song led to an increased preference rating for that song compared to a negative physical movement. Movements associated with smiling muscles (both positive or negative) were found to have the largest effect on musical preference. In turn, music can increase focus in some. It can help your brain interpret information and gain a better understanding of new things more easily. Music can engage the brain in many different ways, whether that be making one more attentive, focused, increased concentration etc. According to a 2017 study, soft, fast music was concluded to have a positive effect on productiveness. Songs with lyrics are potentially more distracting than instrumental melodies and music with other modes or tempos could possibly evoke obstructive emotions for learning. Music can improve one's mood, create a positive mindset, reduce stress etc., this can directly correlate to learning improvements. Season of the year Season of the year can also affect preferences. After reflecting upon fall or winter seasons, participants preferred reflective and complex music, whereas after reflecting upon summer or spring, participants preferred energetic and rhythmic music. In the same study, it was found that meaningful songs were preferred in the colder seasons (fall and winter) whereas dance songs are preferred in the warmer (spring and summer) seasons. However, "pop" music seems to have a universal appeal, despite the season. Familiarity Familiarity and complexity both have interesting effects on musical preferences. As seen in other types of artistic media, an inverted U relationship is apparent when relating subjective complexity on liking music excerpts. Individuals like complexity to a certain degree, then begin to dislike the music when complexity gets too high. Furthermore, there is a clear positive monotonic relationship between familiarity and liking of music. == See also ==