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Exploring the Effects of Background Music on Real-Time Emotional Expressions, Performance, and Confusion Mediation in Middle School Students

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Abstract

Advancement in the fields of emotion regulation and performance in learning settings has developed our collective understanding of how affective stimuli modulate emotional responses of learners who are engaging in learning tasks. Studies in the application of background music during cognitively demanding tasks have led to a continued study of how music can be used to affect an emotional response in listeners.

The present study used automated facial recognition technology to examine the effects of background music stimulation on middle school learners completing a reading comprehension task. Results indicated that there were significant differences in emotional expressions of anger and frustration while listening to music, coinciding with greater performance on accompanying reading comprehension tasks. The mediation of this ‘confused’ emotional state could be an indicator of the emotionally salient application of music to help manage these emotional responses. These findings contribute preliminary evidence of the application of facial-emotion recognition technology to identify the effects of musical stimulation on learning, and the possible application of musical stimuli to emotion regulation.

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The authors would like to thank Professor Charlene Ryan for her help in editing this manuscript.

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    Matthew Moreno & Earl Woodruff

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Moreno, M., Woodruff, E. Exploring the Effects of Background Music on Real-Time Emotional Expressions, Performance, and Confusion Mediation in Middle School Students. Tech Know Learn 28, 143–163 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-021-09556-9

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