The Effect of Music on Performance of a Task

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The Effect of Music on Performance of a Task

Project Brief

PB1: Statement of Hypothesis.

There will be a difference between how participants perform on anagram tests depending on whether they are in a condition which has a fast music, slow music or no music played.

PB2: Explanation of Direction of Hypothesis.

The hypothesis is non-directional because a study by Mayfield and Moss (1989) found that when participants underwent a task with either fast or slow music they found fast music acted as a cause of stress and slowed down how fast they could perform the task. However a study by Stough et al. (1994) found that when participants did an IQ test in either silence or with Mozart playing in the background there was no effect on the results. Also a study by Turner at al. found the level of music caused a slower response time in the study.

PB3: Identification of Research Method/ Design.

The research method design being used is experimental. A laboratory experiment is going to be used. The task will take place in the form of a sheet of 30 anagrams. The design is going to be a repeated measures experiment.

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PB4: Evaluation of the Advantages and Disadvantages of the Chosen Research Method.

One disadvantage of the research method is that it is not like real life. In a real situation participants may not have to be sat down doing a task with just music playing in the background. Their may be other confounding variables such as the volume of the music. Therefore it will have a low ecological validity.

An advantage of this study is that it is replicable; therefore confirmation of the results will be possible. This will ensure that the study is reliable.

Another advantage is that ...

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