Does your own choice of background music change how you read?

Details

Listening to background music while learning is common, but whether it helps or hinders learning remains inconclusive, and the underlying mechanism is largely an open question. This study investigated how self-selected background music affects reading for learners with different characteristics. It examined reading performance, metacognition and eye movements in relation to language proficiency, working memory capacity, music experience and personality.

In a between-subject experiment, 100 non-native English speakers were randomly assigned to two groups. The experimental group read English passages with music of their own choice playing in the background; the control group completed the same task in silence.

There were no salient differences between the groups in passage comprehension accuracy or metacognition. However, comparisons of fine-grained eye movement measures indicated that background music imposed a heavier cognitive load on post-lexical processes, but not lexical processes. Students with higher English proficiency or more frequent background music use during daily self-learning or reading experienced less cognitive load when reading with their chosen music. In the music condition, students with higher working memory capacity invested more mental effort than those with lower working memory capacity.

The authors say these findings advance understanding of how background music interacts with cognitive tasks in the foreground and offer practical guidance for learners and learning environment designers seeking to make the most of music for instruction and learning.