Music Has the Power to Make You Feel Less Lonely

Music is powerful. It can uplift one’s mood. It boosts energy levels. And, it brings people together. Anyone who’s attended a party or festival with music, understands that a melody or song can connect people and boost relationships.

Now, recent research, published in Scientific Reports, demonstrates that music doesn’t just help build relationships within groups. Even listening to a tune on your own might be enough to alleviate feelings of loneliness.

Since loneliness and isolation are dangerous conditions that are capable of causing much mental and physical harm, this research is vitally important.

Tunes and Togetherness
Neuroscientist Steffen Herf designed the study to explore the link between mental imagery, music, and social interactions. The study recruited 600 volunteers. Participants were asked to picture themselves journeying to a mountain and half of the volunteers were given folk tunes in various languages to listen to while daydreaming.

Afterwards, participants described what they imagined. Those who didn’t listen to music tended to dream up a lonely hike, whereas those who did were more likely to daydream about traveling with friends and visiting villages. These results were consistent across the study and were not affected by the type of music or the presence and language of lyrics.

A Shared Theory of Mind
The researchers fed participants descriptions into a generative AI that produces images, according to The Conversation. This allowed them to illustrate the daydreams that volunteers had. The pictures show the stark contrast between those who imagined while listening to music and those who did not.

Moreover, when researchers recruited new volunteers to listen to similar music, these volunteers were able to select the AI images conjured up by others while listening to the same tunes. This raises a fascinating theory, that music may stimulate similar mental imagery in different people.

Different Tunes for Different Folks
Inc reports that researchers found that the type and genre of music does not appear to affect a song’s ability to stimulate social imagery. Therefore, to combat loneliness, Herff suggests picking a genre of music that you personally feel connected to.

“People’s relationship to music is a very personal one,” he told Inc. “What might work for one person might not for another.

“In my mind, music’s potential lies in its ease of access and how personalised it can be,” Herff added. “So why not give it a shot and experiment with what works for you? The worst thing that can happen is that you end up listening to some music.”

This groundbreaking study indicates that music might be able to keep the symptoms of loneliness at bay for individuals seeking connections with others. And, even if it doesn’t work, as Herff pointed out, the worst side effect of this treatment is that you might end up listening to some music.