Psychologists have explored why we sometimes like listening to the same song on repeat

Bittersweet songs were listened to more often than happy or relaxing songs, and provoked a deeper connection
By Alex Fradera
It’s that song. Again. The one they play over, and over, and over. It might be your roommate, child, or colleague. The year I shared a flat with my brother, it was Worst Comes To Worst thrice daily. What are the properties of the songs that drive some people to repeatedly listen to them over and over? A new article in Psychology of Music explores the tunes that just won’t quit.

In the Autumn of 2013, the research team led by Frederick Conrad of the University of Michigan asked 204 men and women, mostly in their 30s or younger, what song they were “listening to most often these days”. Participants mentioned mostly pop and rock songs, but also rap, country, jazz and reggae, with only 11 songs picked by more than one listener (the most frequently mentioned were Get Lucky, Royals, and Blurred Lines, all of which were hits in the year of the survey).
Eighty-six per cent of participants listened to their song at least once a week, and almost half did so daily. Sixty per cent said that they liked to re-listen to this song immediately, with many enjoying a third or even fourth go. Participants reported having high levels of connection with their named song, with higher connection associated with a tendency to close their eyes during listening to devote the fullest attention to it.
Prompted to describe their chosen song’s effect in their own words, t...

Source: BPS RESEARCH DIGEST - March 9, 2018 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: BPS Research Digest Tags: Emotion Music Source Type: blogs