How Shared Preferences in Music Create Bonds Between People

Boer, Diana; Fischer, Ronald; Strack, Micha; Bond, Michael Harris; Lo, Eva; Lam, Jason

doi:10.1177/0146167211407521

Cited by 160 publications

(165 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…However, music listening may also be rewarding in some contexts independently of whether or not music evokes an emotion by itself. For instance, some studies have revealed that social bonds are enhanced by music (Boer et al, 2011;Cross & Morley, 2009) and that sharing music preference may increase social attraction (Boer et al, 2011). On the other hand, coordination of movements in a group while playing or dancing together leads to increased social cohesion of a group (Cross & Morley, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual Differences in Music Reward Experiences

et al. 2012

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MUSIC IS ONE OF THE MOST PLEASANT HUMANexperiences, even though it has no direct biological advantage. However little is known about individual differences in how people experience reward in musicrelated activities. The goal of the present study was to describe the main facets of music experience that could explain the variance observed in how people experience reward associated with music. To this end we developed the Barcelona Music Reward Questionnaire (BMRQ), which was administrated to three large samples. Our results showed that the musical reward experience can be decomposed into five reliable factors: Musical Seeking, Emotion Evocation, Mood Regulation, Social Reward, and Sensory-Motor. These factors were correlated with socio-demographic factors and measures of general sensitivity to reward and hedonic experience. We propose that the five-factor structure of musical reward experience might be very relevant in the study of psychological and neural bases of emotion and pleasure associated to music.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual Differences in Music Reward Experiences

et al. 2012

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“…However today, researchers (Rentfrow, Goldberg, & Levitin, 2011;Bonneville-Roussy, Rentfrow, Xu, & Potter, 2013) have adopted an approach aligned with interactionist theories (Buss, 1987;Swann, Rentfrow, & Guinn, 2002), positing that people seek out music and musical environments that reflect and reinforce more explicit and observable characteristics and traits. The correlations between musical preferences and psychological constructs such as personality traits (Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003), values (Boer et al, 2011) and age demographics (Bonneville-Roussy et al, 2013) have been studied, and convergence across many studies from varied geographical regions (Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003;George, Stickle, Rachid, & Wopnford, 2007;Delsing, ter Bogt, Engels, & Meeus, 2008;Zweigenhaft, 2008;Brown, 2012;Dunn, de Ruyter, & Bouwhuis, 2012;Langmeyer, Guglhör, & Tarnai, 2012) has provided clear evidence that these constructs are linked in a similar fashion. Extraverts for example prefer music that is "upbeat and conventional" (pop, soundtrack, and religious genres) and "energetic and rhythmic" (soul/funk and electronic/dance genres), and people high in Openness to Experience prefer "reflective and complex" music (blues, jazz, classical and folk genres) (Rentfrow & McDonald, 2009).…”

Section: Musical Preferencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Can Music Increase Empathy? Interpreting Musical Experience Through the Empathizing–Systemizing (E-S) Theory: Implications for Autism

Greenberg

Rentfrow

Baron‐Cohen

2015

EMR

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Recent research has provided evidence that musical interaction can promote empathy. Yet little is known about the underlying intrapersonal and social psychological processes that are involved when this occurs. For example, which types of music increase empathy and which types decrease it; what role, if any, does empathy play in determining individual differences in musical preference, perception, and performance; or, how do these psychological underpinnings help explain the musical experiences of people with autism spectrum conditions (ASC). To address these questions we employ the Empathizing-Systemizing (E-S) theory as a fruitful framework in which to understand these music-related phenomena. Specifically, we explore how individual differences in musical preference, perception, and performance can be explained by E-S theory. We provide examples from open-ended descriptions of strong musical experiences to demonstrate the ways in which empathy and music inter-relate. Importantly, we discuss the implications for the study of autism, and for how music therapists and clinicians can use music as a tool in their work with individuals diagnosed with ASC.Submitted 2014 April 29; accepted 2014 June 29. KEYWORDS: empathy, autism, musical preference, perception, performance EMPATHY is a fundamental feature of human interaction. It requires both cognitive (Dennett, 1989;Baron-Cohen, 1995) and affective (Davis, 1994) components that enable people to recognize the emotional and mental states of others, and to respond to these with appropriate emotions (Harris, Johnson, Hutton, Andrews, & Cooke, 1989;Baron-Cohen & Wheelwright, 2004). Empathy allows for the perception of another's thoughts and feelings, and allows one to predict how they will behave (Whiten, 1991). Music listening and performance, which is a universal feature of human behavior (Blacking, 1995), also requires components of cognitive and affective processing. We listen and are exposed to music for hours each day (Motion Picture Association of America, Inc, 2007;Rentfrow, 2012), during which time we perceive the emotional and psychological content in music; interpret the thoughts, feelings, and proficiency of the musicians from auditory and visual cues (Thompson, Russo, & Quinto, 2008;Tsay, 2013); respond emotively to the music and the musician (Juslin, & Västfjäll, 2008;Zentner, Grandjean, & Scherer, 2008), and can predict the direction of a melodic phrase or narrative. Empathy is thus connected with the perception, interpretation, and emotional reactions to music.However, only recently have researchers in the field of music, personality, and social psychology begun to focus on how music and empathy are linked. For example, Wöllner (2012) showed that people with higher levels of empathy are able to perceive and identify a musician's intentions with greater accuracy than those with lower levels, and Egermann and McAdams (2013) demonstrated that perceived and induced emotion from music is moderated by empathy. Further, not only does empathy influenc...

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“…Though the emotional aspects of music listening have been emphasized in the literature, music also serves strong social functions (Boer et al, 2011, 2012; Boer and Fischer, 2012). People bond over musical activities and shared music references (Selfhout et al, 2009; Boer et al, 2011), and music contributes to the development of collective identities (Tarrant, 2002; Tarrant et al, 2002; Boer et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Music listening in families and peer groups: benefits for young people's social cohesion and emotional well-being across four cultures

Boer

Abubakar

2014

Front. Psychol.

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Families are central to the social and emotional development of youth, and most families engage in musical activities together, such as listening to music or talking about their favorite songs. However, empirical evidence of the positive effects of musical family rituals on social cohesion and emotional well-being is scarce. Furthermore, the role of culture in the shaping of musical family rituals and their psychological benefits has been neglected entirely. This paper investigates musical rituals in families and in peer groups (as an important secondary socialization context) in two traditional/collectivistic and two secular/individualistic cultures, and across two developmental stages (adolescence vs. young adulthood). Based on cross-sectional data from 760 young people in Kenya, the Philippines, New Zealand, and Germany, our study revealed that across cultures music listening in families and in peer groups contributes to family and peer cohesion, respectively. Furthermore, the direct contribution of music in peer groups on well-being appears across cultural contexts, whereas musical family rituals affect emotional well-being in more traditional/collectivistic contexts. Developmental analyses show that musical family rituals are consistently and strongly related to family cohesion across developmental stages, whereas musical rituals in peer groups appear more dependent on the developmental stage (in interaction with culture). Contributing to developmental as well as cross-cultural psychology, this research elucidated musical rituals and their positive effects on the emotional and social development of young people across cultures. The implications for future research and family interventions are discussed.

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How Shared Preferences in Music Create Bonds Between People

Cited by 160 publications

References 69 publications

Individual Differences in Music Reward Experiences

Individual Differences in Music Reward Experiences

Can Music Increase Empathy? Interpreting Musical Experience Through the Empathizing–Systemizing (E-S) Theory: Implications for Autism

Music listening in families and peer groups: benefits for young people's social cohesion and emotional well-being across four cultures

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