Listening habits&subjective effects of background music in young adults ± ADHD

Summary

1 Introduction Music is omnipresent in our daily lives (Hu et al., 2021; International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, 2023; North et al., 2004), serving diverse functions such as emotion regulation, concentration enhancement, and providing background engagement during other activities (Chamorro-Premuzic and Furnham, 2007; Goltz and Sadakata, 2021; Hu et al., 2021; Kotsopoulou and Hallam, 2010; Mas-Herrero et al., 2013; Schäfer et al., 2013). While listening to music can be the primary focus of some activities, background music (BM) refers to music that is not the main focus of attention but is present while the listener engages in another primary activity (Lonsdale and North, 2011; Schellenberg and Weiss, 2013). A UK study found that among 18 to 29 year-olds, BM was listened to during cognitive activities (tasks requiring high cognitive load) such as studying and writing up to 71% of the time (Greasley and Lamont, 2011). Researchers have explored both the musical characteristics and emotions evoked by music (e.g., stimulating vs. relaxing music) that may differently influence performance on cognitive tasks (Gonzalez and Aiello, 2019; Schellenberg and Weiss, 2013). According to previous studies, listening to music can exert both detrimental and beneficial effects on attention (Christopher and Shelton, 2017; Mendes et al., 2021). For example, some researchers demonstrated that individuals who are better at controlling their attention are less distracted by music during certain cognitive tasks (Christopher and Shelton, 2017; Goltz and Sadakata, 2021; Pelletier et al., 2016; Salmi et al., 2020). BM is also commonly associated with various benefits such as emotion regulation, which can positively influence performance (Juslin and Västfjäll, 2008). However, studies show heterogeneity in its objective effects on various experimentally measured cognitive activities (Kämpfe et al., 2010). For instance, while some studies report that BM may enhance concentration and...