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Okely JA, Overy K, Deary IJ. Experience of Playing a Musical Instrument and Lifetime Change in General Cognitive Ability: Evidence From the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936. Psychol Sci 2022; 33:1495-1508. [PMID: 36031803 DOI: 10.1177/09567976221092726] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
We tested whether experience of playing a musical instrument was associated with lifetime change in cognitive ability. Participants were 366 older adults from the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 who had completed general cognitive-ability assessments at ages 11 and 70 and reported their lifetime experience of playing a musical instrument at age 82. This sample included 117 participants with musical-instrument experience, mostly at a beginner or an intermediate level. There was a small, statistically significant positive association between experience of playing a musical instrument and change in general cognitive ability between ages 11 and 70; specifically, individuals with more musical-instrument experience were likely to show greater gains in general cognitive ability. This association was reduced but remained statistically significant following adjustment for covariates (childhood and adulthood socioeconomic status, years of education, and disease history). These findings suggest that playing a musical instrument is associated with a long-term cognitive advantage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith A Okely
- Lothian Birth Cohort Studies, Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh
- Department of Psychology, Edinburgh Napier University
| | - Katie Overy
- Reid School of Music, University of Edinburgh
- Edinburgh Neuroscience, University of Edinburgh
| | - Ian J Deary
- Lothian Birth Cohort Studies, Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh
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Ruth N, Müllensiefen D. Survival of musical activities. When do young people stop making music? PLoS One 2021; 16:e0259105. [PMID: 34818348 PMCID: PMC8612519 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0259105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Although making music is a popular leisure activity for children and adolescents, few stay musically engaged. Previous research has focused on finding reasons for quitting musical activities, pedagogical strategies to keep students engaged with music, and motivational factors of musical training. Nonetheless, we know very little about how the proportion of musically active children changes with age and what traits influence the survival of musical engagement. This study used longitudinal data from secondary school students in the UK and Germany aged between 10 and 17 years. A survival analysis was applied to investigate the trajectories of musical activities across this age span. Other factors like type of learned instrument, gender, personality and intelligence were taken into account for further analyses using generalized linear models. Results indicate that about 50% of all students drop out of music lessons and other musical activities by the time they turn 17 years old, with most students quitting between the ages of 15 and 17. Musical home environment is an important factor that is associated with lower drop out rates while conscientiousness and theory of musicality showed smaller significant associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Ruth
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London, New Cross, London, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | - Daniel Müllensiefen
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London, New Cross, London, United Kingdom
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Gustavson DE, Friedman NP, Stallings MC, Reynolds CA, Coon H, Corley RP, Hewitt JK, Gordon RL. Musical instrument engagement in adolescence predicts verbal ability 4 years later: A twin and adoption study. Dev Psychol 2021; 57:1943-1957. [PMID: 34914455 PMCID: PMC8842509 DOI: 10.1037/dev0001245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Individual differences in music traits are heritable and correlated with the development of cognitive and communication skills, but little is known about whether diverse modes of music engagement (e.g., playing instruments vs. singing) reflect similar underlying genetic/environmental influences. Moreover, the biological etiology underlying the relationship between musicality and childhood language development is poorly understood. Here we explored genetic and environmental associations between music engagement and verbal ability in the Colorado Adoption/Twin Study of Lifespan behavioral development & cognitive aging (CATSLife). Adolescents (N = 1,684) completed measures of music engagement and intelligence at approximately age 12 and/or multiple tests of verbal ability at age 16. Structural equation models revealed that instrument engagement was highly heritable (a² = .78), with moderate heritability of singing (a² = .43) and dance engagement (a² = .66). Adolescent self-reported instrument engagement (but not singing or dance engagement) was genetically correlated with age 12 verbal intelligence and still was associated with age 16 verbal ability, even when controlling for age 12 full-scale intelligence, providing evidence for a longitudinal relationship between music engagement and language beyond shared general cognitive processes. Together, these novel findings suggest that shared genetic influences in part accounts for phenotypic associations between music engagement and language, but there may also be some (weak) direct benefits of music engagement on later language abilities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel E. Gustavson
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN,Vanderbilt Genetics Institute, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
| | - Naomi P. Friedman
- Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO,Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO
| | - Michael C. Stallings
- Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO,Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO
| | | | - Hilary Coon
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT
| | - Robin P. Corley
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO
| | - John K. Hewitt
- Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO
| | - Reyna L. Gordon
- Vanderbilt Genetics Institute, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN,Department of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN,Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
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Correction and Validation of Time-Critical Behavioral Measurements over the Internet in the Stage Twin Cohort with More Than 7000 Participants. PSYCH 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/psych2030012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Behavioral data are increasingly collected over the Internet. This is particularly useful when participants’ own computers can be used as they are, without any modification that relies on their technical skills. However, the temporal accuracy in these settings is generally poor, unknown, and varies substantially across different hard- and software components. This makes it dubious to administer time-critical behavioral tests such as implicit association, reaction time, or various forms of temporal judgment/perception and production. Here, we describe the online collection and subsequent data quality control and adjustment of reaction time and time interval production data from 7127 twins sourced from the Swedish Twin Registry. The purposes are to (1) validate the data that are already and will continue to be reported in forthcoming publications (due to their utility, such as the large sample size and the twin design) and to (2) provide examples of how one might engage in post-hoc analyses of such data, and (3) explore how one might control for systematic influences from specific components in the functional chain. These possible influences include the type and version of the operating system, browser, and multimedia plug-in type
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Theorell T. Music amateurs and professional musicians - their childhood music and their adult health. NORDIC JOURNAL OF MUSIC THERAPY 2018. [DOI: 10.1080/08098131.2018.1477825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Töres Theorell
- Stockholm University - Stress Research Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Sweden
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Talking about childhood music: A twin study. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2018. [PMID: 29779739 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2018.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register]
Abstract
To what extent do childhood experiences of music practice influence thinking about music later in life? In this contribution, 27-54-year-old monozygotic twins discordant with regard to piano playing in life were interviewed about music experiences during childhood and adult years. Recordings of heart rate variability were performed continuously during the interviews which were done separately with playing and nonplaying cotwins. Random factors had determined whether the twin chose to play or not. The rationale behind using monozygotic twins was that this offered a possibility to account totally for genetic influence. The physiological recordings in general showed small intrapair differences. However, during the initial discussion about how the difference arose in piano practice during childhood, the nonplaying twin used more time and showed evidence of a stronger sympathetic activation than the cotwin. These findings are discussed against the background of music's importance in childhood.
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Madison G, Woodley of Menie MA, Sänger J. Secular Slowing of Auditory Simple Reaction Time in Sweden (1959-1985). Front Hum Neurosci 2016; 10:407. [PMID: 27588000 PMCID: PMC4988978 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2016] [Accepted: 08/02/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
There are indications that simple reaction time might have slowed in Western populations, based on both cohort- and multi-study comparisons. A possible limitation of the latter method in particular is measurement error stemming from methods variance, which results from the fact that instruments and experimental conditions change over time and between studies. We therefore set out to measure the simple auditory reaction time (SRT) of 7,081 individuals (2,997 males and 4,084 females) born in Sweden 1959-1985 (subjects were aged between 27 and 54 years at time of measurement). Depending on age cut-offs and adjustment for aging related slowing of SRT, the data indicate that SRT has increased by between 3 and 16 ms in the 27 birth years covered in the present sample. This slowing is unlikely to be explained by attrition, which was evaluated by comparing the general intelligence × birth-year interactions and standard deviations for both male participants and dropouts, utilizing military conscript cognitive ability data. The present result is consistent with previous studies employing alternative methods, and may indicate the operation of several synergistic factors, such as recent micro-evolutionary trends favoring lower g in Sweden and the effects of industrially produced neurotoxic substances on peripheral nerve conduction velocity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guy Madison
- Department of Psychology, Umeå UniversityUmeå, Sweden
| | - Michael A. Woodley of Menie
- Department of Psychology, Technische Universität ChemnitzChemnitz, Germany
- Center Leo Apostel for Interdisciplinary Studies, Vrije Universiteit BrusselBrussels, Belgium
| | - Justus Sänger
- Department of Psychology, Technische Universität ChemnitzChemnitz, Germany
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Corrigall KA, Schellenberg EG. Predicting who takes music lessons: parent and child characteristics. Front Psychol 2015; 6:282. [PMID: 25852601 PMCID: PMC4371583 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2014] [Accepted: 02/26/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Studies on associations between music training and cognitive abilities typically focus on the possible benefits of music lessons. Recent research suggests, however, that many of these associations stem from niche-picking tendencies, which lead certain individuals to be more likely than others to take music lessons, especially for long durations. Because the initial decision to take music lessons is made primarily by a child's parents, at least at younger ages, we asked whether individual differences in parents' personality predict young children's duration of training. Children between 7 and 9 years of age (N = 170) with varying amounts of music training completed a measure of IQ. Their parents provided demographic information as well as ratings of their own and their child's Big Five personality dimensions. Children's personality traits predicted duration of music training even when demographic variables and intelligence were held constant, replicating findings reported previously with 10- to 12-year-olds and 17-year-olds. A novel finding was that parents' openness-to-experience predicted children's duration of training, even when characteristics that pertained to children (demographic variables, intelligence, and personality) were controlled statistically. Our findings are indicative of passive and active gene-environment correlations, whereby genetic predispositions influence the likelihood that a child will have certain experiences, such as music training.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - E Glenn Schellenberg
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga Mississauga, ON, Canada
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