Psychological effects of music tempi during exercise

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of music tempi on intrinsic motivation, flow, and music tempo preference during longduration exercise (~ 26 min). Subjects (n = 29) selected the music of a single artist then walked at 70% of maximum heart rate reserve (maxHRR) on a treadmill under three experimental conditions (medium tempi, fast tempi, and mixed tempi) and a no-music control. A tempo preference item, the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory, and Flow State Scale-2 were completed after each trial. Data were analyzed using a mixed-model (Gender × Condition) ANOVA and MANOVA. The Gender × Condition interaction was nonsignificant in both analyses (p > 0.05). Contrary to expectations, higher preference scores were recorded for medium tempi than for mixed tempi (means: 7.8 ± 1.3 vs. 7.1 ± 1.1). The medium tempi music also yielded the highest levels of intrinsic motivation (p < 0.001). Pairwise comparisons showed that interest-enjoyment was higher for medium tempi when compared to mixed tempi, 95% CI = 1.80–8.48, p = 0.001, and that each of the experimental conditions yielded higher scores than the no-music control. Also, pressure-tension was lower for medium tempi compared to fast tempi, 95% CI = – 3.44–0.19, p = 0.022, and for both medium and mixed tempi compared to control (95% CI = – 5.33–2.89, p = 0.000; 95% CI = – 4.24–0.64, p = 0.004). A main effect was found for global flow (p = 0.000) with the highest mean score evident in the medium tempi condition (14.6 ± 1.5). Follow-up comparisons indicated that the medium tempi condition yielded higher flow scores than the control, 95% CI = 1.25–3.60, p = .000, as did fast tempi, 95% CI = 0.89–3.14, p = 0.000, and mixed tempi, 95% CI = 1.36–3.76, p = 0.000. It was concluded that a medium tempi music program was the most appropriate for an exercise intensity of 70%maxHRR.