Perceived choice in music listening is linked to pain relief

According to a recent research on the subject, persons who felt as though they had some influence over the music they listened to were more likely to experience pain alleviation than those who did not feel this way. On August 3, 2022, Dr. Claire Howlin of Queen Mary University of London in the United Kingdom and associates from University College Dublin in Ireland report these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE.

Listening to music can help relieve pain, especially chronic pain, which is discomfort that lasts longer than 12 weeks. The underlying processes of these advantages, particularly for acute pain, which is defined as discomfort lasting less than 12 weeks, remain unknown. Basic musical elements like speed or vigor appear to be less significant for pain treatment; instead, feeling in control of the music may be vital. However, prior research mostly concentrated on results from lab-based samples and ignored pre-existing acute discomfort in the actual world.

Howlin and colleagues asked 286 persons who were suffering severe pain in the real world to assess their pain before and after listening to a music recording in order to increase understanding. The song was created specifically in two versions with varied levels of intricacy. Participants were randomly allocated to hear either the low-complexity or high-complexity version, and some were chosen to appear to have some control on the musical elements of the track, even though they all heard the identical file.

Researchers discovered that individuals who believed they could control the music had a higher reduction in the severity of their pain than those who did not. Participants in surveys claimed to love both renditions of the song, but no correlations between musical intricacy and degree of pain alleviation were discovered. Additionally, having a sense of control over the track utilized in this study resulted in even larger pain-relieving advantages for people who actively listen to music in their daily lives.

These results imply that for music to fully realize its pain-relieving potential, decision and participation are critical. Future studies might look more closely at the connection between music preference and subsequent participation as well as methods for increasing engagement to enhance pain treatment.

The authors further say: "We now understand that a key component of the advantages of music listening for health is the process of selecting music. When selecting their own music, people are probably more attentive or conscientious listeners."

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