It has long been known that there are strong connections among sound, music, emotion, and memory, and that our personal experiences and preferences determine the type and intensity of emotional reaction we have to various sounds.<\/p>\n
For example, research has revealed these prevalent associations between certain sounds and emotions:<\/p>\n
Other sounds have a more universal identity. UCLA researchers<\/a> have observed that the sound of laughter is universally identified as a positive sound signifying enjoyment, while other sounds are globally associated with fear, anger, disgust, sadness, and surprise.<\/p>\n So why are we susceptible to particular emotional responses in the presence of certain sounds? And why does the response tend to differ between individuals?<\/p>\n Although the answer is still effectively a mystery, current research by Sweden’s Lund University<\/a> provides some fascinating insights into how sound and sound environments can affect humans on personal, emotional, and psychological levels.<\/p>\n Here are six psychological mechanisms through which sound may stir up emotions:<\/p>\n You\u2019re seated quietly in your office when all of a sudden you hear a loud, sudden crash. What\u2019s your response? If you\u2019re like most, you become emotionally aroused and compelled to investigate. This kind of impulse is subconscious and hard-wired into your brain to warn you to possibly critical or life-threatening sounds.<\/p>\n People frequently associate sounds with selected emotions based on the context in which the sound was heard. For example, hearing a song previously played on your wedding day may produce feelings of joy, while the same song first heard by someone during a bad breakup may create the opposing feelings of sadness.<\/p>\n When someone smiles or starts laughing, it\u2019s difficult to not start smiling and laughing yourself. Research carried out in the 1990s revealed that the brain may contain what are referred to as \u201cmirror neurons\u201d that are active both when you are carrying out a task AND when you are observing someone else perform the task. When we hear someone speaking while crying, for example, it can be challenging to not also experience the corresponding feelings of sadness.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say you love listening to CDs that contain exclusively the sounds of nature. Why do you like it? Presumably because it evokes a positive emotional experience, and, taking that even further, it most likely evokes some robust visual images of the natural surroundings in which the sounds are heard. Case in point, try listening to the sounds of waves crashing and NOT visualizing yourself relaxing at the beach.<\/p>\n Sounds can stimulate emotionally powerful memories, both good and bad. The sounds of rain can stir up memories of a pleasurable day spent at home, while the sound of thunder may lead to memories affiliated with combat experience, as seen in post-traumatic stress disorder.<\/p>\n Music has been depicted as the universal language, which seems logical the more you consider it. Music is, after all, simply a random assortment of sounds, and is pleasing only because the brain imposes order to the sounds and interprets the order in a specified way. It is, in fact, your expectations about the rhythm and melody of the music that trigger an emotional response.<\/p>\n Irrespective of your specific responses to different sounds, what is certain is that your emotions are directly involved. With hearing loss, you not only lose the capacity to hear particular sounds<\/a>, you also lose the emotional impact tied to the sounds you can either no longer hear or can no longer hear well.<\/p>\n With hearing loss, for instance, nature walks become less pleasant when you can no longer hear the faint sounds of running water; music loses its emotional punch when you can\u2019t differentiate specific instruments; and you place yourself at greater risk when you can\u2019t hear fire alarms or other alerts to danger.<\/p>\n1. Brain-Stem Reflex<\/h2>\n
2. Evaluative Conditioning<\/h2>\n
3. Emotional Contagion<\/h2>\n
4. Visual Imagery<\/h2>\n
5. Episodic Memory<\/h2>\n
6. Music Expectancy<\/h2>\n
Sound, Emotion, and Hearing Loss<\/h2>\n