Dr Becky Spelman a specialist in Cognitive Behavioural comments on the study of over 2,000 employed Brits commissioned by commercial radio Scala, found many wear headphones and listen to music to help concentration while working as bid to block out colleague’s noise.
“Music has a really powerful impact on the brain, it affects mood and mental and physical performance.” Dr Becky Spelman
A third of those studies even think they work harder whilst listening to music, and a further two in five of them believe their productivity is improved. 47 per cent claim to feeling less stressed when listening to music while working.
“Many people find that listening to certain types of instrumental music can help them with their productivity levels. The music can function as a sort of ‘white noise’, cancelling out potentially distracting ambient noise.”
“Provided the music has a calm, regular beat, it can actually help us to stay calm, reducing our stress, slowing our heart rate, and moderating our pulse.”
“This makes it easier for us to focus on the task at hand rather than entering into ‘flight or fight’ mode, in which it can be very difficult to think clearly because of our elevated levels of adrenaline and cortisol.”
The results come after an experiment saw four office workers given a 600-word task to complete to see how music affects their productivity compared to being in a silent room. The results found that workers completed the task three minutes faster than they did with no background music.
“Many people find that listening to certain types of instrumental music can help them with their productivity levels. The music can function as a sort of ‘white noise’, cancelling out potentially distracting ambient noise.”
“Provided the music has a calm, regular beat, it can actually help us to stay calm, reducing our stress, slowing our heartrate, and moderating our pulse.”
“This makes it easier for us to focus on the task at hand rather than entering into ‘flight or fight’ mode, in which it can be very difficult to think clearly because of our elevated levels of adrenaline and cortisol.”
The study also looked at those who worked from home, discovering that of those who listen to music in the workplace, six in ten are based in an office, with 49 per cent either always or sometimes working from home.
More than two thirds of those who work from home would “struggle” to concentrate without having music to listen to. Overall, 71 per cent of those studied who work from home on occasions listen to music throughout their day with 28 per cent saying it helps them feel less alone.
A quarter of those polled, via OnePoll, even said music is encouraged within their current workplace and 24 per cent feel it keeps them alert and awake.
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