Pulses of Background Music

Felszeghy and teammates set out learn how listening to music influences stress levels and performance of manual tasks by studying dental students listening to what was categorized as “slow background music”: “the music reduced stress but also increased motivation to learn and practice. . . . Time use and quality of cavity preparation were enhanced. This study lends support to the use of slow background music in preclinical cariology training, as it appeared to have helpful effects on dental skills education and practice.” Slow background music is described “as classical, jazz, easy listening, or slow pop music. Songs with a tempo of around 60 beats per minute were defined as slow (relaxing) music. . . .  A medium-level volume of 45–50 dB was chosen based on the recommendations of the Association of the Federal Office for Economic Affairs, Labor and Foreign Trade SECO, which state that duties requiring cognitive concentration should be performed with a noise exposure level under 50 dB.”

Szabolcs Felszeghy, Miko Liukkonen, Carlos Tornero, Olli Auvinen, Kallie Hamalainen, Aisha Banafa, and Pirjo Kurki. “Influence of Background Music on Stress Reduction and Impact on Performance During Students’ Simulation Exercises.”  Journal of Dental Education, in press, https://doi.org/10.1002/jdd.13235