Passing the Time When in Pain: Investigating the Role of Musical Valence

Journal

Psychomusicology

Year

2016

Abstract

The effective management of pain outside of clinical settings represents a significant challenge to health services. Music listening has been successfully used as a method of pain management, with.the greatest benefits to listeners evident if the music is familiar, preferred, and has emotional resonance. This study examined the role of self-selected emotion-inducing music used for pain.management (pain tolerance, intensity, perceived control, distraction, and anxiety reduction) during.the cold pressor test. In a repeated-measures design, 4 cold pressor tests were used to induce.short-term, acute pain, while 41 participants listened either to happy, sad, relaxing, or no music..Findings indicated that music enhanced pain tolerance over no music, and happy and relaxing music.increased pain tolerance and altered time perception to a greater extent than sad music. Happy and.relaxing music facilitated distraction from pain and enhanced perceived pain control. Relaxing music.additionally had anxiolytic properties and reduced pain intensity. Results suggest that music's.inclusion in pain management is justified and that music with happy and relaxing components can.be used to facilitate coping with pain in a nonclinical context. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

Music and Health Institute Terms

Acute Pain; Anxiety; Coping; Experimentally Induced Pain; Music Listening; Music Medicine; Music as Distraction; Pain; Pain Management and Control; Pain Score or Rating; Pain Severity; Pain Tolerance; Recorded Music Listening; Self-Efficacy; Self-Report Measures

Indexed Terms

Listening; Testing; Pain Management

Study Type

Quasi-Experimental Study; Quantitative Methods

PubMed ID

1841007916

Document Type

Article

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