Running head: POP AND CLASSICAL MUSIC ON STRESS

Effects of Pop and Classical Music on Stress Levels of College Students

Authors Name
University of Georgia

POP AND CLASSICAL MUSIC ON STRESS

Effects of Pop and Classical Music on Stress Levels of College Students

Despite numerous investigations of the impact music has on the mind, there are still gaps
in this area of literature. Researchers have long been examining the effects of music on mental
processes such as the minds ability to cope with stress. In his book, The Stress of Life, Selye
(1956) discusses a list of physiological responses to stress, including increased heart rate, blood
pressure, muscle tone, and respiration. He states that these reactions are known as a persons
fight or flight response[s]. Music therapy is often proven effective in the management of stress
responses in certain individuals, such as college students who are prone to stressful events and
situations (Selye, 1956). The wide variety of musical genres and styles available today leads one
to wonder which combination of music is most effective at lowering stress levels.
Previous studies have established the relationship between musical genre and human
response. For example, a study conducted by Kellaris and Kent (1993) showed that positive
feelings while listening to music can be associated with music pitched in major keys. In addition,
the study showed that music pitched in minor keys could result in negative effects on mood and
feelings. Suda et al. demonstrated a large decrease in stress (cortisol levels) in participants that
listened to the beginning portion of Mozarts Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major (Suda,
Morimoto, Obata, Koizumi, & Maki, 2008). While there was also a decrease in stress levels
using a minor key song, the effect size of music in a major key was larger. Songs written in
major keys, which are often described as sounding happy, seem to be the most effective at
decreasing stress in the body.
Classical music is very often linked to relaxation and stress relief (Selye, 1956).
However, it may be just as effective to listen to ones own choice of music to relax (Labb,
Schmidt, Babin, & Pharr, 2007). In a study of 56 college students, both classical and participant-

POP AND CLASSICAL MUSIC ON STRESS

selected music resulted in a reduction of stress and an increase in relaxation in participants

(Labb et al., 2007). Heavy metal music was also examined in this study and was found to
increase both anxiety and stress.
Pop music has also been examined in music and stress research. In the previously
mentioned study by Kellaris and Kent (1993), pleasure and arousal were measured in response to
pop and classical music. Interestingly, they found that pop songs of a faster tempo increased
arousal while classical songs of a similar tempo did not. However, there was no significant
increase in listener pleasure as a result of increased tempo for either pop or classical music.
These studies all aid in the understanding of effects of music on stress, but they also leave some
areas of question.
The current study will examine the relationship between music and stress management in
the body. As the claim being made is causal, this study will utilize an experimental design.
Unlike the Labb et al. study (2007), this experiment will only look at the effects of songs in
major keys. The independent variable is music type and it will have three levels: the absence of
music, self-selected pop songs, and self-selected classical songs. The dependent variable is
decrease in stress, and this will be measured both through physiological tests and through selfreported surveys. Stress levels will be measured and compared between participants in each of
these three groups. Participants will be randomly assigned into the three treatment conditions and
pick from a list of classical songs, pop songs, or will not listen to music at all. Participants will
play a computer game designed to induce stress while introduced to the classical, pop, or no
music conditions. Blood pressure and heart rate will be monitored to indicate stress levels, and
participants will take a brief survey after playing the computer game. Based on the findings that
pop music has a positive effect on arousal (Kellaris & Kent, 1993), it is hypothesized that

POP AND CLASSICAL MUSIC ON STRESS

individuals who are exposed to classical music will show a larger decrease in stress than
individuals who are exposed to pop music or no music.

POP AND CLASSICAL MUSIC ON STRESS

References
Kellaris, J.J., & Kent, R.J. (1993). An exploratory investigation of responses elicited by music
varying in tempo, tonality, and texture. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2, 381-404.
doi:10.1016/S1057-7408(08)80068-X
Labb, E., Schmidt, N., Babin, J., & Pharr, M. (2007). Coping with stress: The effectiveness of
different types of music. Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, 32, 163-168.
doi:10.1007/s10484-007-9043-9
Selye, H. (1956). The Stress of Life. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Suda, M., Morimoto, K., Obata, A., Koizumi, H., & Maki, A. (2008). Emotional responses to
music: Towards scientific perspectives on music therapy. NeuroReport: For Rapid
Communication of Neuroscience Research, 19, 75-78.
doi:10.1097/WNR.0b013e3282f3476f