[johangrb]

From today's WSJ:
 
"Background music interferes with the ability to memorize and recall sequences, according to a study in Applied Cognitive Psychology. Though previous studies have found that listening to music before an exam improves performance—a phenomenon sometimes called the "Mozart effect"—the present study examined the effect of hearing music during a task"
 
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703988304575413231864435268.html?mod=WSJ_hps_sections_health#articleTabs%3Darticle
 
or http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1731/abstract
 
Agree or disagree?
 

 

[Somnambulist]

I leave Bloom on my iPhone on sometimes, but I find any sort of structured music just distracts me. Even instrumental!

 

[Meliboeus]

I listen to music while studying quite often, but i mostly do exercises and calculations, so some level of distraction is allowed...

 

[Meliphcient]

I have always felt distracted by music while tryign to study. I do however acknowledge taht if you listen to particular songs while doing something, it is MUCH easier to recall what you were doing when you hear those songs again. I believe this is very similar to the way smells can evoke memory.

 

[solidsnake]

As long as it doesn't have lyrics, I can concentrate.

 

[Region2]

I always listened to music while studying.  Though I usually take a different route.  If I'm in a noisy environment, I'll put on a song that's not necessarily attention grabbing--the more generic the better--and just play it on repeat.  Usually it's loud enough to drown out other distractions--not ear piercing mind you, just enough that other sounds aren't as distracting--and after a while I can zone out that song so I can stay focused.
 
I've always found a bit of music made studying easier.  That and regular breaks because overly long periods of concentration tend to be wasted as nothing goes in until I pop for a 10-15 minute break every 40 minutes to an hour.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Agree completely. I've spent a bit of time studying (and will be doing a lot more over the next year), and always found that I do not multitask very well. Music, no matter what it is, pulls me off task and is distracting. I do like to leave a fan on for some white noise.

 

[Hero Kid]

It depends on what type of music... but anything melodic and generally without words works for me. It means I can sit in my room and study for hours, whilst if I don't have music on I get bored and wonder off.

 

[rawrster]

It is a small sample size so I'm not sure how accurate it is. I do believe that it can be a distraction depending on the person. For myself I need some kind of noise to actually be able to study effectively so total quiet would not work for myself. I always study with music on and am able to concentrate just fine.

 

[moaksb]

I recently saw a BBC show called the making of me. In this particular episode Vanessa-Mae had to take two tests, one in absolute silence and one with a lot of distractions. She did better in the latter, which let the researcher to conclude she was an extrovert. He said that introvert people perform better when they are alone, and extrovert people thrive in noisy, busy environments.

 

[logwed]

I can't multitask at all. My girlfriend, on the other hand, can bake cookies, chat on facebook, listen to crappy music and do her homework whilst doing just as well in school as I. I can't have music playing at all, otherwise I totally lose focus and it takes me 20 times as long to do my work. I don't get it.

 

[Ypoknons]

I can multitask, but I have my limits too. Music isn't nessasarily distracting, but when something requires my full concentration it gets mentally blocked out - say if I'm dealing with a tough math or um... disentangling some complicated contracts, I find that half the album has passed before I notice the music again.

 

[tasteful]

For me, music with interesting lyrics is too distracting to listen to while studying. I find it a waste to listen to post rock while studying (because of the mind-blowing lyrics). I don't like listening to new music while concentrating on something as I kind of phase out the music which muddles up my impression of it.
 
On the other hand, yeah, instrumental stuff can really kind of grease things while studying or grinding away at something tedious (e.g. manual data input, working on a paper that doesn't come too easy, etc.).

 

[xnor]

I also agree @OP.

 

[HaroldLand]

Quote:

From today's WSJ:
 
"Background music interferes with the ability to memorize and recall sequences, according to a study in Applied Cognitive Psychology. Though previous studies have found that listening to music before an exam improves performance—a phenomenon sometimes called the "Mozart effect"—the present study examined the effect of hearing music during a task"
 
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703988304575413231864435268.html?mod=WSJ_hps_sections_health#articleTabs%3Darticle
 
or http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1731/abstract
 
Agree or disagree?
 

My daughter studied to music right through school and on to University. She was dux of her school, straight A+ at Uni, proceeding with honours degree.
Might effect others differently
Pete