Could classical music make us more curious?

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2023-12-18 11:01

International

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Listening to classical music can make people more curious about the world around them, even if that curiosity comes with a risk, according to international researchers. In the first of three experiments, participants watched a video of a magic trick while listening to white noise or a classical piece, such as Chopin’s Nocturnes. They were then presented with a wheel of fortune. Spin the wheel and there was a 20% chance of gaining the solution to the trick, 80% chance of an electric shock. Listening to music made participants more likely to gamble for the solution.

Media release

From: The Royal Society

Royal Society theme issue – Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B - Art, aesthetics and predictive processing: theoretical and empirical perspectives

The aesthetic valve: how aesthetic appreciation may switch emotional states from anxiety to curiosity

Listening to classical music can make people more curious about the world around them, even if that curiosity comes with a risk. In the first of three experiments, participants watched a video of a magic trick while listening to white noise or a classical piece, such as Chopin’s Nocturnes. They were then presented with a wheel of fortune. Spin the wheel and there was a 20% chance of gaining the solution to the trick, 80% chance of an electric shock. Listening to music made participants more likely to gamble for the solution.

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Journal/
conference: Philosophical Transactions B

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: University of Turin, Italy

Funder: K.M. is funded by The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (the Alexander von Humboldt Professorship endowed by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research); K.S. is funded by PNRR project NODES (European Union – Next Generation EU; Italian Ministry of University and Research). I.R. is funded by PON project ‘Ricerca e Innovazione’ 2014–2020 (Italian Ministry of University and Research).

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