Music and Studying: Helping or Hindering

Whether you’re revising for exams or drafting an essay, it’s important to be in a setting with the ideal conditions to allow you to maintain focus and make good progress. These ‘conditions’ are incredibly individualized, with some people preferring a good level of background noise – as might be provided by a café – whereas others require utter silence. Similarly, some like to listen to music while they study, whereas others cannot. However, is there an objectively better option? Can music be helpful at all? Is some music better than others? Allow me to crack the case and help you optimise your learning.

[Music] can be essential in providing motivation for those long, draining study sessions, and can reduce stress in high-stake situations, such as daunting deadlines or before exams

There’s a range of studies which detail the advantages of using music when you study. Music can benefit and boost your mood, as evidenced in an array studies ranging from 2013, 2019 and 2021. It can be essential in providing motivation for those long, draining study sessions, and can reduce stress in high-stake situations, such as daunting deadlines or before exams. It has also been argued in research from 2007 and 2011, that music can help provide focus and can assist you in absorbing and interpreting new information. Similarly, a 2014 study found that music, classical in particular, can increase memory and processing skills. Therefore, there is a lot of evidence to support the claim that music is helping you learn.

Contrastingly, there is a fair amount of literature opposing the notion that music can help you in studying, suggesting that it may instead hinder your ability. This is potentially obvious, but music can act as a distraction. This can slow down your progress when studying, make you lose your train of thought, or tempt you to stop studying altogether. Furthermore, in opposition to the aforementioned 2014 study, a later study in 2017 argues that our working memory capacity is negatively impacted by music. Moreover, there is evidence to support that loud and fast music, and that with lyrics, can impede reading comprehension – which would definitely be a burden to bear as a university student.

Based on the available data, it remains unclear as to whether music is to our benefit or detriment, but it does illuminate which music genres might be a safer option for studying. The studies in favour often refer to classical music, and thus music without lyrics appear to be a stronger choice. Moreover, music which lacks surprising and experimental elements seems to be a favoured option. Research which argued against listening to music cited ‘loud and fast’ as two key problems, so if you want to listen to music, a slower track on a lower volume would be theoretically advantageous. A further note of advice would be to play music, either with physical media or a subscription, to avoid advertisements.

Following those scientific ramblings, I would love to provide you with some recommendations if you do choose to study with music. With that in mind, I am not accountable if you decide to use any of my suggestions and they decrease your productivity – but I would love to take credit if they help!

My first suggestion, inspired by my friends who study Psychology and Biochemistry, would be an OST (meaning original soundtrack) from a game or a movie. In particular, I recommend Dune (2021) and the Minecraft soundtrack. These soundtracks, as suggested, have no lyrics. I would highly recommend the Minecraft Albums, as they are full of variation, yet remain soothing and ambient. The tracks also don’t peak in intensity to an overwhelming degree, which allows you to remain engaged and focused while studying.

I am now going to recommend two tracks which I acknowledge as absolutely opposing what the studies advocate for, but I have found through my own lived experience as saving graces when studying. The first track is ‘Funkytown’, originally by Lipps Inc., but I am embarrassingly prompting you to listen the version of ‘Funkytown’ by Alvin and the Chipmunks. It’s fast, it’s unorthodox and has lyrics, so I understand it’s not looking good, but the beat and the rhythm truly allowed me to lock in when revising for my A-Levels. The second track is also experimental and has lyrics, but Fatman Scoop’s ‘Be Faithful’, a club classic, was my secret weapon during first year to make progress in my essays, so I can’t critique it.

Irrespective of the research, I think some experimentation with music and studying is a personal journey that everyone should take

Irrespective of the research, I think some experimentation with music and studying is a personal journey that everyone should take – maybe not before a summative assessment, but definitely at some point. If anything, I think my personal recommendations show that the science is flawed (or maybe I am). Either way, it is us as individuals that are undoubtedly best suited for finding out what works best for us. So, I implore you to discover what works for you, whether that be loud music, classical music, a podcast, or complete silence.