A critical evaluation of the mood induction technique using music

Abstract

The technique of inducing mood with music, which has been used in many studies investigating the relationship between emotions and cognition, is problematic on a number of points. In particular, allowing participants to become aware in advance that they are to listen to music can affect their mood evaluations. Consequently, it is not clear whether the music actually causes a change in mood or whether the change is due to an evaluation of the music by the listener. In the present study, one group of participants was incidentally exposed to music, and their data was compared with that from one group that underwent the conventional method and from one group that evaluated the music itself. The results suggest that participants may confound their evaluations of mood with their evaluations of the music itself. Finally, we discuss some issues related to the conventional technique of inducing mood with music.View full abstract