Many people listen to music while working, working out at the gym or just relaxing.
But how does music affect your brain? Along with stimulating the release of dopamine, also known as the feel-good hormone, science has shown that listening to music can increase cognitive function, potentially ease symptoms of anxiety and stress, and help us stay focused. It's no wonder that many of us choose to listen to music before, during and after our workouts.
The researchers added that as more areas of the brain are activated, we can begin to feel the effects of music. If you're listening to fast-paced music, you may start to feel more alert and energetic. If you are listening to relaxing music, you may start to feel calmer and more relaxed.
In a 2008 study published in the journal Perception and Motor Skills, researchers found that rhythm with or without musical accompaniment may be able to "facilitate text recall," meaning that listening to music can help us we remember pieces of information. Furthermore, a 2010 study in perceptual and motor skills found that music may be able to improve our cognitive function outside of the context of memory tasks.
Music increases our arousal level, meaning how alert and alert we feel, and this puts us at an optimal level to improve memory. In particular, the theory suggests that adding entertaining auditory backgrounds makes a learning task more interesting and therefore increases the learner's overall level of arousal.