Research on specific qualities of music used for relaxation has shown conflicting results. The use of different familiar or pre-composed pieces, with many simultaneous changes, might limit the ability to discriminate which musical element is responsible for the relaxation response. To address the latter, we examined the relaxing effects of music on three psychophysiological measures (heart rate, respiration rate, and skin conductance) with one original piece of music, and three modified versions (altering one musical element in each version). We investigated whether participants’ psychophysiological responses reflected a more “relaxed” state (lower heart rate, respiration rate, and skin conductance) with slower tempo (45 bpm), mellow timbre (bass clarinet), or smaller amplitude (-10 dB). We also investigated whether psychophysiological responses were consistent with self-report scores. Visual inspection of psychophysiological data indicated two distinct responder profiles, and a logistic regression confirmed this distinction. Using mixed ANCOVAs, we found significant differences between participants (responders and non-responders) in skin conductance level. No correlations between psychophysiological measures and self-reports were found. These findings raise interesting questions regarding the mechanisms behind the relaxing effects of music.
AndreassiJ. L. (2007). Psychophysiology: Human behavior and physiological response (5th ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Psychology Press.
2.
BairdJ.HillC. M.KendrickT.InskipH. M., & the SWS Group (2009). Infant sleep disturbance is associated with preconceptional psychological distress: Findings from the Southampton Women’s Survey. Sleep, 32, 566–568. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/32.4.566
3.
BensonH.KotchJ. B.CrasswellerK. D.GreenwoodM. M. (1977). Historical and clinical considerations of the relaxation response: The relaxation response, because of the physiologic changes observed during its elicitation, may have significance in counteracting overactivity of the sympathetic nervous system. American Scientist, 65, 441–445.
4.
BernardiL.PortaC.SleightP. (2005). Cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and respiratory changes induced by different types of music in musicians and non-musicians: The importance of silence. Heart, 92, 445–452. doi:10.1136/hrt.2005.064600
5.
BernatzkyG.PreschM.AndersonM.PankseppJ. (2011). Emotional foundations of music as a non-pharmacological pain management tool in modern medicine. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 35, 1989–1999. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2011.06.005
6.
BlanaruM.BlochB.VadasL.ArnonZ.ZivN.KremerI.HaimovI. (2012). The effects of music relaxation and muscle relaxation techniques on sleep quality and emotional measures among individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder. Mental Illness, 4(2), 59–65. doi: 10.4081/mi.2012.e13
7.
ChanM. F.WongZ. Y.ThayalaN. V. (2011). The effectiveness of music listening in reducing depressive symptoms in adults: A systematic review. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 19, 332–348. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2011.08.003
8.
ChangB.CaseyA.DusekJ. A.BensonH. (2010). Relaxation response and spirituality: Pathways to improve psychological outcomes in cardiac rehabilitation. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 69(2), 93–100. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2010.01.007
9.
ChangB. H.DusekJ. A.BensonH. (2011). Psychobiological changes from relaxation response elicitation: Long-term practitioners vs. novices. Psychosomatics, 52, 550–559. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psym.2011.05.001
10.
CoutinhoE.CangelosiA. (2011). Musical emotions: Predicting second-by-second subjective feelings of emotion from low-level psychoacoustic features and physiological measurements. Emotion, 11, 921–937. doi:10.1037/a0024700
11.
CrawfordI.HoganT.SilvermanM. J. (2013). Effects of music therapy on perception of stress, relaxation, mood, and side effects in patients on a solid organ transplant unit: A randomized effectiveness study. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 40, 224–229. doi: 10.1016/j.aip.2013.02.005
12.
ElliottD.PolmanR.McGregorR. (2011). Relaxing music for anxiety control. Journal of Music Therapy, 48, 264–288. doi: 10.1093/jmt/48.3.264
13.
ElliottD.PolmanR.TaylorJ. (2014). The effects of relaxing music for anxiety control on competitive sport anxiety. European Journal of Sport Science, 14, 296–301. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2012.693952
14.
GogineniA.AlsupR.GillespieD. (1995). Mediation and moderation in social work research. Social Work Research, 19, 57–63.
15.
GomezP.DanuserB. (2007). Relationships between musical structure and psychophysiological measures of emotion. Emotion, 7, 377–387. doi.org/10.1037/1528–3542.7.2.377
16.
GoshvarpourA.AbbasiA.GoshvarpourA. (2016). Gender differences in response to affective audio and visual inductions: Examination of nonlinear dynamics of autonomic signals. Biomedical Engineering: Applications, Basis and Communications, 28(4). doi.org/10.4015/S1016237216500241
17.
Hanson-AbromeitD. (2015). A conceptual methodology to define the therapeutic function of music. Music Therapy Perspectives, 33, 25–38. doi:10.1093/mtp/miu061
18.
HoffmanJ. W.BensonH.ArnsP. A.StainbrookG. L.LandsbergG. L.YoungJ. B.GillA. (1982). Reduced sympathetic nervous system responsivity associated with the relaxation response. Science, 215(4529), 190–192. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1126/science.7031901
19.
JiangJ.ZhouL.RicksonD.JiangC. (2013). The effects of sedative and stimulative music on stress reduction depend on music preference. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 40, 201–205. doi: 10.1016/j.aip.2013.02.002
20.
JuslinP. N.HarmatL.EerolaT. (2014). What makes music emotionally significant? Exploring the underlying mechanisms. Psychology of Music, 42, 599–623. doi: 10.1177/0305735613484548
21.
JuslinP. N.BarradasG.EerolaT. (2015). From sound to significance: Exploring the mechanisms underlying emotional reactions to music. The American Journal of Psychology, 128, 281–304. doi: 10.5406/amerjpsyc.128.3.0281
22.
KrumhanslC. L. (1997). An exploratory study of musical emotions and psychophysiology. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology/Revue Canadienne De Psychologie Expérimentale, 51, 336–353. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/1196–1961.51.4.336
23.
LabbéE.SchmidtN.BabinJ.PharrM. (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
24.
LinghamJ.TheorellT. (2009). Self-selected “favourite” stimulative and sedative music listening—how does familiar and preferred music listening affect the body?Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 18(2), 150–166. doi: 10.1080/08098130903062363
25.
LinnemanA.DitzenB.StrahlerD.DoerrJ. M.NaterU. M. (2015). Music listening as a means of stress reduction in daily life. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 60, 82–90. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.06.008
26.
LundqvistL.CarlssonF.HilmerssonP.JuslinP. N. (2009). Emotional responses to music: Experience, expression, and physiology. Psychology of Music, 37, 61–90. doi: 10.1177/0305735607086048
27.
MadsonA.SilvermanM. (2010). The effect of music therapy on relaxation, anxiety, pain perception, and nausea in adult solid organ transplant patients. Journal of Music Therapy, 47(3), 220–232. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1093/jmt/47.3.220
28.
MandelS.DavisB.SecicM. (2013). Effects of music therapy and music-assisted relaxation and imagery on health-related outcomes in diabetes education. The Diabetes Educator, 39, 568–581. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1177/0145721713492216
29.
MarinM. M.LederH. (2018). Exploring aesthetic experiences of females: Affect-related traits predict complexity and arousal responses to music and affective pictures. Personality and Individual Differences, 125, 80–90. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.12.027
30.
NaterU. M.AbbruzzeseE.KrebsM.EhlertU. (2006). Sex differences in emotional and psychophysiological responses to musical stimuli. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 62, 300–308. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2006.05.011
31.
NilssonU. (2009). Soothing music can increase oxytocin levels during bed rest after open-heart surgery: A randomised control trial. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 18, 2153–2161. doi: 10.1111/j.1365–2702.2008.02718.x
32.
O’ConnorT. G.CaprarielloP.BlackmoreE. R.GregoryA. M.GlorerV.FlemingP., & A2SPAC Study Team (2007). Prenatal mood disturbance predicts sleep problems in infancy and toddlerhood. Early Human Development, 83. 451–458. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2006.08.006
33.
OrmanE. K. (2011). The effect of listening to specific musical genre selections on measures of heart rate variability. Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, 30(1), 64–69. doi: 10.1177/8755123311418479
34.
ParkE.TraegerL.VranceanuA.ScuttM.LernerJ.BensonH.. . . FricchioneG. (2013). The development of a patient-centered program based on the Relaxation Response: The Relaxation Response Resiliency program (3RP). Psychosomatics, 54(2), 165–174. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psym.2012.09.001
35.
Perez-LloretS.DiezJ.DomeM. N.DelvenneA. A.BraidotN.CardinaliD. P.VigoD. F. (2014). Effects of different “relaxing” music styles on the autonomic nervous system. Noise & Health, 16(72), 279–284. doi:10.4103/1463–1741.140507
36.
ReeceJ. B.CampbellN. A. (2011). Campbell Biology. Boston: Benjamin Cummings/ Pearson.
37.
SandstormG. M.RussoF. A. (2010). Music hath charms: The effects of valence and arousal on recovery following an acute stressor. Music and Medicine, 2, 137–143. doi: 0.1177/1943862110371486
38.
SmithM. (2008). The effects of a single music relaxation session on state anxiety levels of adults in a workplace environment. The Australian Journal of Music Therapy, 19, 45–66.
39.
TanX.YowlerC. J.SuperD. M.FratianneR. B. (2012). The interplay of preference, familiarity and psychophysical properties in defining relaxation music. Journal of Music Therapy, 49(2), 150–179. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1093/jmt/49.2.150
40.
van der ZwaagM. D.WesterinkJ. H. D. M.van den BroekE. L. (2011). Emotional and psychophysiological responses to tempo, mode and percussiveness. Musicae Scientiae, 15(2), 250–269. doi:10.1177/1029864911403364
41.
VenturaT.GomesM. C.CarreiraT. (2012). Cortisol and anxiety response to a relaxing intervention on pregnant women awaiting amniocentesis. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 37, 148–156. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.05.016
42.
YangM.LiL.ZhuH.AlexanderI.LiuS.ZhouW.RenX. (2009). Music therapy to relieve anxiety in pregnant women on bedrest: A randomized controlled trial. Asian Nursing Research, 34, 316–323. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NMC.0000360425.52228.95
43.
WarthM.KesslerJ.HilleckeT. K.BardenheuerH. J. (2016). Trajectories of terminally ill patients’ cardiovascular response to receptive music therapy in palliative care. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 52(2), 196–204. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2016.01.008
44.
ZhouK.LiX.LiJ.LiuM.DangS.WangD.XinX. (2015). A clinical randomized controlled trial of music therapy and progressive muscle relaxation training in female breast cancer patients after radical mastectomy: Results on depression, anxiety and length of hospital stay. European Journal of Oncology Nursing, 19(1), 54–59. doi:10.1016/j.ejon.2014.07.010
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
