How music benefits children

This article considers the notion of cognitive, behavioural and socio-emotional transfer effects of musical learning. It recaps past findings and adds a short summary of my recent PhD thesis findings supporting a beneficial effect of musical learning on these factors. However, the article also criticises the notion of transfer effects suggesting that this misunderstands how musical learning works, and suggesting the effected factors are actually integral to the process of musical learning

Music in our minds and bodies matters.

This is a pre-publication version of the following article: Rose, D., Jones Bartoli, A., & Heaton, P., ‘Music in our minds and bodies matters’, PsyPAG Quarterly, Issue 103, June 2017. © 2017 The British Psychological Society.This paper aims to convey an introduction to the psychology of music. At a very basic level, sound informs our model of the world, aiding survival. Musical sound and practice further offers a merging of exogenous and endogenous temporal states and templates, employing multiple complex neural mechanisms. Here we provide an overview of the literature exploring why music matters to our minds and bodies.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

A study of cognitive and behavioural transfer effects associated with children learning to play musical instruments for the first time over one academic year.

This is a pre-publication version of the following article: Dawn Rose, Alice Jones Bartoli, and Pamela Heaton, “A study of cognitive and behavioural transfer effects associated with children learning to play musical instruments for the first time over one academic year.”, The Psychology of Education Review, Vol. 39(2): 54-70, October 2015.Interest in studies investigating the indirect effect of music education, evaluated theoretically as ‘transfer effects’ (Barnett & Ceci, 2002) has been re-energised by the recent changes in policy that require musical provision to be justified (Branscombe, 2012). Here we take a holistic approach to musical learning, nesting neuro-psychological measures of near and far transfer within one battery of tests. The mixed design considered the multi-modal characteristics of musicality along a continuum assessing changes over time for behavioural visuo and psycho-motor skills and factors of both intelligence and memory in children in a pilot study. Participants (N=38) aged between 7-9 years were tested over a period of one UK academic year. Groups were assigned based on the amount of musical training they received. Results suggest an advantage for those participants taking music lessons over and above statutory provisions, particularly for hand/eye coordination and nonverbal reasoning.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Changes in the wellbeing of children starting to learn to play musical instruments.

This is a pre-publication version of the following article: 'Changes in the wellbeing of children starting to learn to play musical instruments', D. Rose, P. Heaton, A. Jones Bartoli, Assessment and Development Matters, Vol 7 (1): 26 - 30, Spring 2015, published by the Psychological Society. Available on line at http://shop.bps.org.uk/publications/publication-by-series/assessment-and-development-matters/assessment-development-matters-vol-7-no-1-spring-2015.htmlLearning a musical instrument can be considered a 'superskill' associated with meta-plasticity in the brain (Stewart, 2008). Evidence shows neural structural adaptation after 15 months of musical training (Hyde et al., 2009), and behavioural benefits from 15 weeks of musical training (Overy, 2003). A goal-directed pleasurable reward system appears to support the acquisition of musical skills over time, promoting motivation to continue practicing as the emerging musician learns the autotelic value (a meaning unto itself) of playing their instrument (Elliott, 1993). Peripatetic music teachers note a range of benefits, from the development of team work and social skills to self-discipline, with pupils themselves noting the enhancement of 'life skills', such as improved ability to both concentrate and relax during stressful periods (Kokotsaki & Hallam, 2007). Clift and Hancox (2001) report members of a choral society benefitting socially (87 per cent) and emotionally (75 per cent). Physically, playing piano has been shown to exercise the heart as much as a brisk walk (Parr, 1985) and singing supports the immune system by increasing salivary immunoglobulin production (Clift et al., 2008). Overall, we appear to perceive musical instrument learning (MIL) as providing benefits such as good health, improved quality of life and mental well-being (Hallam, 2010). The hypothesis of the current study is that the group spending more time learning musical instruments will benefit more in measures of emotional and behavioural well-being than those who spend less time on this activity. Methodology and measurement This study took place over one academic year with Time 1 occurring in September 2013 and Time 2 observations in June 2014 (N = 38). The mean age at T1 was 93 months (SD 5.54) with 21 female and 17 males, 22 attending state schools and 16 attending independent schools. The mean IQ was 106 (SD 13.77; Range 74 –133). Twenty participants were classed as having more than one hour of musical learning (a mixture of instruments) per week (the 'More' group), whilst 18 received less than this (the 'Less' group). Parents and teachers completed the Behavioural Assessment System for Children (BASC-II; Reynolds & Kamphaus, 2004). Additionally, parents provided information regarding the number of hours their child spent doing activities classified as musical, physical and leisure, both in and out of school. The BASC-II contains descriptors of behaviour that respondents rate on a four-point scale (Never, Sometimes, Often and Almost Always) and takes 10 to 20 minutes to complete. The clinical scales include aggression, anxiety, attention problems, atypicality, conduct problems, depression, hyperactivity, learning problems, somatisation and withdrawal. The adaptive scales include activities of daily living, adaptability, functional communication, leadership, social skills and study skills.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Music and Metronomes Differentially Impact Motor Timing in People with and without Parkinson's Disease: Effects of Slow, Medium, and Fast Tempi on Entrainment and Synchronization Performances in Finger Tapping, Toe Tapping, and Stepping on the Spot Tasks

© 2019 Dawn Rose et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Introduction: Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation (RAS) has successfully helped regulate gait for people with Parkinson’s disease. However, the way in which different auditory cues and types of movements affect entrainment, synchronization and pacing stability has not been directly compared in different aged people with and without Parkinson's. Therefore, this study compared music and metronomes (cue types) in finger tapping, toe tapping and stepping on the spot tasks to explore the potential of RAS training for general use.Methods: Participants (aged 18-78 years) included people with Parkinson’s (n=30, Hoehn & Yahr Mean=1.78), Older (n=26), and Younger adult controls (n=36), as age may effect motor timing. Timed motor production was assessed using an extended synchronization-continuation task in cue type and movement conditions for slow, medium and fast tempi (81, 116 and 140 mean beats-per-minute respectively).Results: Analyses revealed main effects of cue and movement type but no between group interactions, suggesting no differences in motor timing between people with Parkinson's and controls. Music supported entrainment better than metronome in medium and fast tempi, and stepping on the spot enabled better entrainment and less asynchrony, as well as more stable pacing compared to tapping in medium and fast tempi. Age was not confirmed as a factor and no differences were observed in slow tempo.Conclusion: This is the first study to directly compare how different external auditory cues and movement types affect motor timing. The music and the stepping enabled participants to maintain entrainment once the external pacing cue ceased, suggesting endogenous mechanisms continued to regulate the movements. The superior performance of stepping on the spot suggests embodied entrainment can occur during continuous movement, and this may be related to emergent timing in tempi above 600 ms. These findings can be applied therapeutically to manage and improve adaptive behaviours for people with Parkinson’s.Peer reviewe

Bases expert statement on the use of music for movement among people with Parkinson's

First published in The Sport and Exercise Scientist, February 2020, Issue 63. Published by the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences – www.bases.org.uk.Music is an artistic auditory stimulus that unfolds over time. It can prime specific actions and prompt engagement in physical activity as well as heighten motivation during motor tasks (Karageorghis, 2020). Contrastingly, it can be used to downregulate arousal to facilitate the transition from an active to a sedentary state or to ameliorate anxiety. In therapeutic applications, musical features such as rhythm, melody and harmony have been shown to elicit psychological and physiological changes (Thaut & Hoemberg, 2014). Parkinson’s is a degenerative neurological condition in which the loss of dopamine neurons results in impaired initiation and control of movement, with common symptoms including tremor, postural instability and gait disturbance. There are also non-motor effects that include apathy, anxiety and depression. Medication does not alleviate all manifestations of the condition and there is presently no known cure (Obeso et al., 2017). It is notable that people with Parkinson’s are estimated to be 30% less active than agematched peers (Ramaswamy et al., 2018). Nonetheless, evidence is emerging that a range of exercise-based and social activities that involve musical engagement can serve to address the common symptoms and enhance quality of life (Thaut & Hoemberg, 2014). This statement brings together an international interdisciplinary team to outline what is known about music-related applications for people with Parkinson’s, and to provide recommendations for exercise and health practitioners.Peer reviewe

A general procedure to measure the pacing of body movements timed to music and metronome in younger and older adults

© The Author(s) 2021. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.Finger-tapping tasks are classically used to investigate sensorimotor synchronization in relation to neutral auditory cues, such as metronomes. However, music is more commonly associated with an entrained bodily response, such as toe tapping, or dancing. Here we report an experimental procedure that was designed to bridge the gap between timing and intervention studies by directly comparing the effects of metronome and musical cue types on motor timing abilities across the three naturalistic voluntary actions of finger tapping, toe tapping, and stepping on the spot as a simplified case of whole body movement. Both pacing cues were presented at slow, medium, and fast tempi. The findings suggested that the task of stepping on the spot enabled better timing performances than tapping both in younger and older adults (75+). Timing performances followed an inverse U shape with best performances observed in the medium tempi that were set close to the spontaneous motor tempo in each movement type. Finally, music provided an entrainment effect in addition to pace setting that enabled better motor timing and greater stability than classically reported using a metronome. By applying time-stamp analyses to kinetic data, we demonstrate that tapping and stepping engage different timing modes. This work details the importance of translational research for a better understanding of motor timing. It offers a simple procedure that strengthens the validity of applying academic work and contributes in knowledge towards a wide range of therapeutic interventions.Peer reviewe

Levelling the Playing Field: The Role of Workshops to Explore How People With Parkinson's Use Music for Mood and Movement Management as Part of a Patient and Public Involvement Strategy

© 2022 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/From a humanistic perspective, participatory processes in research find support on both ethical and moral grounds. In practical terms however, it is often difficult to establish protocols that best honour (i.e., elicit, capture, and integrate) the opinions of individuals and groups that represent the various specific stakeholders (e.g., from allied health, scientific, and academic disciplines) needed to investigate complex phenomena. Here, we describe a consultation process (funded by Parkinson's UK) devised to explore use of music among people with Parkinson's in relation to potential applications to enhance quality of life. People with Parkinson's were paired with researchers in order to discuss music on an equal footing so as to enable participant empowerment. We describe outcomes that demonstrate avenues of success as a result of this approach and additional insights gained through these processes in the hope of informing future practise. It has been our experience that researchers must establish a balance between (a) ensuring methodological rigour within an appropriate framework, and (b) facilitating informal “playtime” that develops connectivity between participants and enables both creative thinking and reflexive practise amongst stakeholders. We encourage researchers not to underestimate “playtime” as an important vehicle to foster this social interactivity and fuel the good will required to conduct inclusive and relevant research.Peer reviewe

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<p>Total Sample Size (2009–2015) N = 9023.</p

Preventing Falls in Older Californians: State of the Art

In February 2003, the Foundation convened over 150 leaders in academic, legislative, community-based services, consumer advocates, aging network, housing, public health, public safety, and other leaders who worked for two days on a statewide blueprint on fall prevention.  In preparation for the convening, a Preconference White Paper was created and used to build the blueprint.  The California Blueprint describes state-of-the-art approaches to reducing the risks of falls, and the challenges to implementing fall prevention in California.  One of the top recommendations from this blueprint was the creation of a coordination center that could serve as a statewide resource and lead efforts in fall prevention.  This recommendation eventually led to the creation of the Fall Prevention Center of Excellence (FPCE)