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Fernando M. Gomez

Dr. Sharity Nelson

ENGL 1302 - 101

16 September 2022

How Music Enhances Reading Comprehension and Focus

Introduction

It is said that music can enhance and improve reading skills and comprehension. There

have been numerous research experiments that have been carried out to resolve whether this is

true or if it’s just another academic myth – like that of having a preferred or specific learning

style. According to Perham et al., music with no lyrics and simple silence are the best sound

conditions that allow people to understand and recall written material. Other researchers have

supported that this kind of music can in fact increase attention and focus on readers; this so

called “Mozart Effect” is said to increase arousal and mood, enhance attention and improve

memory of a read text or intellect ability (Schellenberg). While it is debated, music can enhance

reading comprehension and focus by improving recall or memory, mood and performance. This

experiment aims to confirm or debunk whether certain music categories enhance and improve or

interfere with reading capabilities. Rather than evaluating retention and memory of information

through subject based questions, this experiment will discover music’s ability to improve reading

cognition and focus.

Methods

A four-day research experiment was conducted to determine if a certain type of music or

no music at all can enhance the performance of reading a designated book over a fixed time

period. This study was evaluated from Wednesday through Saturday during a busy week of
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college work and a distracting weekend. In this experiment, each session corresponded to a

music category played during a 1-hour period of reading in a controlled environment.

The important factors or controlled variables were having the participant get enough

sleep with a minimum of 8 hours, eliminate all distractions during each session by being in a

conference room, and read at the same time of day. This ensured getting rid of elements or

factors that might disrupt the results of the experiment such as tiredness and other distractions.

Sound level was kept at an average 65- 75 dB (Decibels) range. After each session, a short

questionnaire was administered to the participant evaluating their focus level based on a 1–5

scale (1 being little to no focus level, and 5 being very focused). Then, they were instructed to

summarize what they read in 3-5 sentences and comment on whether the sound environment did

or did not improve their focus level (Personal Evaluation).

Each session lasted 30 minutes. This ensured avoiding fatigue after working cognitive

functions for too long per period. Performance was evaluated by recording the number of pages

read every 15 minutes. Music was chosen by searching up playlists corresponding to the music

category for each session and were prolonged for as long as needed to reach the 30-minute

session time period. The four music categories, each for every session day, were: Quiet (No

Music), Classical/Instrumental (Mozart), Soft Jazz (With and Without lyrics, varied authors), and

80s Pop Music. The book assigned was “Failing Up!” by Barbara Hong.

Results

Session 1 (Silence)

The first session, focus level improved over the session. After the session, he was able to

easily recall what he had read and expressed that his concentration level was high. The quietness

allowed him to concentrate on what he was reading and had zero difficulty making connections
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with the author. Having no music facilitated reading comprehension and focus. Evaluated focus

level was 5 of 5.

Session 2 (Classical Instrumental)

The automatic playlist for the second session included songs like piano and orchestral

versions of famous classical numbers composed by famous musical author Mozart. The

participant expressed that at the beginning of the session there was slight distraction while

beginning to read; there was also moderate distraction throughout and near the end of the

session. The participant expressed that their focus level was moderate but not exceptional. He

explained that having a background in playing a classical instrument (i.e., piano) made him focus

more on some of the musical numbers chosen throughout the session rather than the reading -

essentially being distracting. While the participant was focused, the participant was not entirely

concentrated. Comprehension level was evaluated and came at about 4 of 5 on the focus grade

scale.

Session 3 (Soft Jazz, Occasional Lyrics)

Upon categorical search, the third session had a playlist that included some of the

following artists and their songs: Kenny G, Grover Washington Jr., Boney James, and more

(Instrumental with and without lyrics). The participant demonstrated an improved focus level

throughout the session with an emphasis in non-lyrical music as compared to occasional lyrical

songs. The participant expressed that this sort of “coffee shop” music allowed him to establish a

focus level that was related to calmness and concentration – a sort of white noise for this

participant. However, it was “increasingly distracting”, the participant expressed. Focus level

was evaluated on average to be 3 of 5.

Session 4 (80s Pop Music)

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For the fourth and final session, the participant was exposed to listening to 80s Pop Music

throughout the reading session. Before the session, the participant expressed that this was his

favorite type of music (Liked Lyrics). They also expressed that they were used to listening to this

music category when working and going to sleep. Focus level was maintained throughout the

entirety of the session at an average 5 of 5 on the focus grade scale. This specific music category

allowed the participant to maintain a joyous mood that encouraged the participant to want to

continue reading. After a while, the music became part of the background and allowed the

participant to focus solely on the book.

Summary (Observations from all sessions)

Throughout every session, there was a constant factor observed on the participant: the

participant seemed to be startled as they were introduced to each sound environment but would

gradually adjust as the session took place. This showed that the participant was aware of the

sound environment that they were placed in.

Discussion

“Preferred conditions” enhances reading performance - and depending on the task at hand; this

experiment agrees with this statement (Schellenberg 372). The “Mozart Effect” myth was

debunked through this experiment since the participant recognized the difficulty of performing

certain musical numbers composed by Mozart, having his attention directed to the music rather

than on the reading material. Rather than investigating whether phonological information

improved short-term memory, such as in Martin et al.’ experiment, this experiment aimed to

evaluate cognitive efficiency in reading and comprehension and focus in select text when

exposed to music - exactly what it accomplished. Martin et al.’s research exposed an important

factor influencing reading cognition and focus by stating that “reading comprehension depends
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on the conversion of written words to their phonological representations […] (383). A sort of

“inner speech”, this technique is a person’s way of comprehending an activity that involves

reading and that the presence of noise and how either can enhance or hinder reading capability.

Observations throughout the experiment exposed this fact and confirmed that reading cognition

is related to the sound environment subjects are exposed to. Although this experiment failed to

include participants of a diverse selection of age, sex, and ethnicity, Furnham et al.’s study

suggests that there is no inherent comparison between these differences. In conclusion,

depending on the task at hand and the music category preference of a subject, people can

improve their reading skills given that they have well established reading habits. Although this

was proven, there is still much research to be made in the field of semantic processing while

exposed to sound environments, including the effects of listening to music of different

languages, eras or other categories as observed in bilingual people, workers of different

professions, and people of who did not always have music accessible.
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Works Cited

Furnham, Adrian, et al. “The Distracting Effects of Vocal and Instrumental Music on the

Cognitive Test Performance of Introverts and Extraverts.” Personality and Individual

Differences, vol. 27, no. 2, 1999, pp. 381–392., ScienceDirect - Pergamon,

https://doi.org/10.1016/s0191-8869(98)00249-9.

Martin, Randi C, et al. “Reading Comprehension in the Presence of Unattended Speech and

Music.” Journal of Memory and Language, vol. 27, no. 4, 1988, pp. 382–398.,

ScienceDirect - ResearchGate, https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-596x(88)90063-0. 

Nantais, Kristin M., and E. Glenn Schellenberg. “The Mozart Effect: An Artifact of

Preference.” Psychological Science, vol. 10, no. 4, 1999, pp. 370–373., Health & General

Sciences - ResearchGate, https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9280.00170.

Perham, Nick, and Harriet Currie. “Does Listening to Preferred Music Improve Reading

Comprehension Performance?” Applied Cognitive Psychology, vol. 28, no. 2, 2014, pp.

279–284., Wiley Online Library, https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.2994.