Hearing fast-tempo music in the background is shown to affect the pace of motor behavior. However, the mechanism underlying this phenomenon remains unclear. We investigated how tempo influences behavioral pace in a simple perceptual-motor task in which participants heard background sound sequences (30, 60, 120, 180, and 240 bpm) while performing a line-tracing task. The order of the tempo conditions (ascending vs. descending series of tempo) was manipulated. When sound sequences changed from slower to faster tempi (that is, ascending series), behavioral pace accelerated. However, the pace did not change in the descending series. The subjective arousal level increased under faster tempo sounds regardless of tempo series. The results indicated that the ongoing tempo of background sounds did not determine the behavioral pace directly through increased arousal or perceptual-motor synchronization. Not only the ongoing tempo but also the preceding tempo of background sounds is shown to be an important factor for behavioral pace change.
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