From Mozart to Fleetwood Mac: music listening is not detrimental to reading comprehension in university students

Most university students choose to study with music, yet whether this is detrimental or beneficial for studying remains unclear. We investigated the impact of music listening with 279 participants who “often listen to music while studying”, using a reading comprehension task as an indicator of study performance. Students were randomly assigned to one of 3 conditions (participant-selected music, background noise, or silence) during reading. We measured reading comprehension test scores, and ratings of emotional positivity and energy before reading, after reading, and post-test. There was no effect of music listening on reading comprehension – participants performed equally well whether they listened to music, background noise, or silence. Music listening did impact emotion – participants in the noise and silence conditions reported decreased positivity after reading, while those in the music condition maintained their positivity. Participants in the music and noise conditions experienced no change in energy, while those who heard silence felt less energised after reading. Analysis of chosen music from participants in the music condition revealed no relationships between audio features and reading scores. These findings indicate that listening to self-selected music has no detrimental impact on reading comprehension and may protect against the decrease in positivity students experience during study.