As we were saying yesterday, many individuals who took part in the project explained that they usually remember a certain song or part of a song when they face stressful situations.
One woman said that by the age of 16, when she had become very stressed during final exams, she was literally “haunted” by a particular song (“Nathan Jones” by The Supremes) that has followed her into her adult life, especially during stressful periods such as her wedding day and the birth of her first child.
Scientific Observation
After carefully considering the results of her study, Dr. Williamson concluded that what is probably behind the recall of certain musical memories and tunes is the fact that our brain encodes music in different ways because the brain stimulates different senses when hearing it.
It is without a doubt connected to many personal and emotional associations, which increase the chances of recalling the tune whenever we experience a situation similar to the one we experienced when we first heard the song.
Ironically, me and my bestie from back in high school were listening to Macarena when we had a non-fatal car accident, which still caused a lot of stress and pain to both of us. At least, now I KNOW why this song would play like a broken record in my head every time I was under too much stress.
Melody's Not a Factor Really
Also according to the Earworm Project, the melody does not seem to play a particular role in how often we recall it, meaning that if the song is great or not is totally insignificant.
On the other hand, a team of researchers at Western Washington University conducted a series of experiments on 300 volunteers who were asked to listen to several songs and then perform various activities.
The experiment used songs by artists such as Lady Gaga and with their help psychologists were able to demonstrate that the songs we know and like are typically the ones that usually “jump” into our minds when we least expect it.
Earworm Phenomenon Tightly Linked With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
The researchers noted in their study that the mental, involuntary repetition of certain songs is pretty similar to involuntary thoughts and memories which also “invade” our minds without us engaging in an activity to recall them.
In other words, the whole earworm phenomenon is perfectly associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Tell em' Monk...
Say Hello To My "Little Friend" Called The Auditory Cortex
Another team of researchers at Dartmouth University suggests that when we listen to a song, it triggers a part of the brain called the auditory cortex. During a study on “earworms” they found that when they played part of a familiar song to the people in the study, the participants’ auditory cortexes automatically filled in the rest.
To put it simply, their brains kept “singing” long after the song had ended, while some of them would even sing out loud or even dance. Stuff like that pretty much...
A more recent and radical study conducted by a scientific team at the University of Cincinnati concluded that earworms are simply a defense mechanism of our system and a way to keep the brain busy when it’s idling.
Official Conclusion: Stress Is To Blame
Most scientists disagree with the aforementioned conclusion and connect the phenomenon with stress and agree that stuck tunes are like thoughts we’re trying to suppress. The harder we try not to think about them, the more they keep invading our heads.
The fact, however, seems to be that there are as many theories as there are names to describe this phenomenon, which is called everything from repetunitis to melodymania, despite earworms being the dominant word for it in this article.
To close on a positive note, we will accept the most concrete advice pretty much every expert and researcher gives about how one can escape from those pesky brain and ear “invaders.”
They all recommend (when the phenomenon occurs) doing something that requires the use of headphones or activities that demand our attention or memory, such as reading a fascinating book or watching our favorite film, so that we can keep our brain busy until the earworms get tired and beat it.
And in case some of you are wondering how I managed to face my own demons with the specific phenomenon, it was all thanks to FANTASY; my own antidote to Macarena.
I will always love you Mariah!!!
In Case You Missed Part I, Please Click Here
References:
Earworms: The Song Stuck in Your Head
Earworm Project, Goldsmiths, University of London
Like a Catchy Tune, UC Marketing Professor Makes Earworm Definition Stick
How To Get That Tune Out Of Your Head
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Being A SteemStem Member
As I said yesterday, this is one of your best posts and now I start to understand why I love this song so much!!!
These two articles are interesting. But I don't really see why any drama about earworms :D although I know some my friends sometimes make drama about it. Buuuuut, when I have some song constantly in my mind, I don't try to get rid of it. I am also confused sometimes, but I always just listen to that song many times or sing (since, if it's in my mind it means that I want more of that song :D), and then it 'leaves me' quickly and I forget about the whole thing. :)
So, as you wrote at the end, let's just let it be. :D
I am glad you enjoyed my articles Katarina :)
Song That Stuck in My Head :
Thank you... now i got half of those stuck in my head too... "i'mm fadeeeedd"
It does make a lot of anecdotal sense that earworms are associated with OCD. Although I don't believe I have a huge OCD issue, I do believe I have some level of it, which at worst, is slightly annoying and at best is just funny and easily brushed off. To be honest, if the song's nice, I could not care less about earworms.
1 despercito
2 rap god
3 swagg
4 I'm albatros
5 hotel california
Well, I think that having a song in our head is a lot of relaxation and sometimes we love that song a lot or we just remember it for good times or we just hear it so much and in several places that we sing it without realizing it ... they are always good and pleasant memories ... I do not see the bad or the strange ... as it just comes from my head ... I think the best thing is to give importance to the things that deserve it ...
Applying this to neurolinguistic programming, its probably best to listen to songs only with good messages! Awesome post.
Now I feel better for despacito popping into my ears sometimes, thanks!!
Great post @tkappa, I can't listen to songs with lyrics while I'm studying, as soon as I listen to them I get an earworm for hours and can't focus on studying
Despacito is not as bad, mate ;)
Mariah is so 1995... I had her on my cassette walkman. My favorite is Thunder.... so happy and cheerful sound whenever I catch the song on radio or in the mall.