{"678788":{"#nid":"678788","#data":{"type":"news","title":" Music Can Change How You Feel About the Past","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHave you ever noticed how a particular song can bring back a flood of memories? Maybe it\u2019s the tune that was playing during your first dance, or the anthem of a memorable road trip.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPeople often think of these musical memories as fixed snapshots of the past. But recent research \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/maplab.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003Emy team\u003C\/a\u003E and I published suggests music may do more than just trigger memories \u2013 it might even \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3758\/s13415-024-01200-0\u0022\u003Echange how you remember them\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EI\u2019m a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=Wbi5_VYAAAAJ\u0026amp;hl=en\u0022\u003Epsychology researcher\u003C\/a\u003E at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Along with my mentor \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=DfJix_sAAAAJ\u0026amp;hl=en\u0022\u003EThackery Brown\u003C\/a\u003E and University of Colorado Boulder music experts \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=tfZIzOEAAAAJ\u0026amp;hl=en\u0022\u003ESophia Mehdizadeh\u003C\/a\u003E and \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=KK-gSk8AAAAJ\u0026amp;hl=en\u0022\u003EGrace Leslie\u003C\/a\u003E, our recently published research uncovered intriguing connections between music, emotion and memory. Specifically, listening to music can \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3758\/s13415-024-01200-0\u0022\u003Echange how you feel about what you remember\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 potentially offering new ways to help people cope with difficult memories.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EMusic, stories and memory\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhen you listen to music, it\u2019s not just your ears that are engaged. The areas of your brain responsible for emotion and memory also become active. The hippocampus, which is essential for \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1037\/0033-295x.99.2.195\u0022\u003Estoring and retrieving memories\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/npp.2015.171\u0022\u003Eworks closely\u003C\/a\u003E with the amygdala, the brain\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1146\/annurev.psych.56.091103.070234\u0022\u003Eemotional center\u003C\/a\u003E. This is partly why certain songs are not only memorable but also deeply emotional.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/doi.org\/10.1017\/S0140525X08005293\u0022\u003Emusic\u2019s ability to evoke emotions and trigger memories\u003C\/a\u003E is well known, we wondered whether it could also alter the emotional content of existing memories. Our hypothesis was rooted in the concept of \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.nlm.2016.12.012\u0022\u003Ememory reactivation\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 the idea that when you recall a memory, it becomes temporarily malleable, allowing new information to be incorporated.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWe developed a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3758\/s13415-024-01200-0\u0022\u003Ethree-day experiment\u003C\/a\u003E to test whether music played during recall might introduce new emotional elements into the original memory.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOn the first day, participants memorized a series of short, emotionally neutral stories. The next day, they recalled these stories while listening to either positive music, negative music or silence. On the final day, we asked participants to recall the stories again, this time without any music. On the second day, we recorded their brain activity with fMRI scans, which measure brain activity by detecting changes in blood flow.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOur approach is analogous to how movie soundtracks can alter viewers\u2019 perceptions of a scene, but in this case, we examined how music might change participants\u2019 actual memories of an event.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe results were striking. When participants listened to emotionally charged music while recalling the neutral stories, they were \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3758\/s13415-024-01200-0\u0022\u003Emore likely to incorporate new emotional elements\u003C\/a\u003E into the story that matched the mood of the music. For example, neutral stories recalled with positive music in the background were later remembered as being more positive, even when the music was no longer playing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEven more intriguing were the brain scans we took during the experiment. When participants recalled stories while listening to music, there was \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3758\/s13415-024-01200-0\u0022\u003Eincreased activity in the amygdala and hippocampus\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 areas crucial for emotional memory processing. This is why a song associated with a significant life event can feel so powerful \u2013 it activates both emotion- and memory-processing regions simultaneously.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWe also saw evidence of strong communication between these emotional memory processing parts of the brain and the parts of the brain \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3758\/s13415-024-01200-0\u0022\u003Einvolved in visual sensory processing\u003C\/a\u003E. This suggests music might infuse emotional details into memories while participants were visually imagining the stories.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EMusical memories\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOur results suggest that music acts as an emotional lure, becoming intertwined with memories and subtly altering their emotional tone. Memories may also be more flexible than previously thought and could be influenced by external auditory cues during recall.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile further research is needed, our findings have exciting implications for both everyday life and for medicine.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor people dealing with conditions such as depression or PTSD, where \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1037\/a0015621\u0022\u003Enegative memories can be overwhelming\u003C\/a\u003E, carefully chosen music might help reframe those memories in a more positive light and potentially reduce their negative emotional impact over time. It also opens new avenues for exploring \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/gps.4494\u0022\u003Emusic-based interventions\u003C\/a\u003E in treatments for depression and other mental health conditions.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOn a day-to-day level, our research highlights the potential power of the soundtrack people choose for their lives. Memories, much like your favorite songs, can be remixed and remastered by music. The music you listen to while reminiscing or even while going about your daily routines might be subtly shaping how you remember those experiences in the future.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe next time you put on a favorite playlist, consider how it might be coloring not just your current mood but also your future recollections as well.\u003C!-- Below is The Conversation\u0027s page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --\u003E\u003Cimg src=\u0022https:\/\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/239045\/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic\u0022 alt=\u0022The Conversation\u0022 width=\u00221\u0022 height=\u00221\u0022\u003E\u003C!-- End of code. If you don\u0027t see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https:\/\/theconversation.com\/republishing-guidelines --\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThis article is republished from \u003C\/em\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/theconversation.com\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThe Conversation\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cem\u003E under a Creative Commons license. Read the \u003C\/em\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/theconversation.com\/music-can-change-how-you-feel-about-the-past-239045\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003Eoriginal article\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cem\u003E.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"full_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EHave you ever noticed how a particular song can bring back a flood of memories? Maybe it\u2019s the tune that was playing during your first dance, or the anthem of a memorable road trip.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Have you ever noticed how a particular song can bring back a flood of memories? Maybe it\u2019s the tune that was playing during your first dance, or the anthem of a memorable road trip."}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2024-12-09 16:29:54","changed_gmt":"2026-03-19 13:15:32","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2024-12-02T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2024-12-02T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"675791":{"id":"675791","type":"image","title":"Music and Memory","body":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMusic could alter the emotional tenor of your memories. \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/photo\/black-and-white-portrait-of-a-beautiful-woman-with-royalty-free-image\/1394844171\u0022\u003ECoffeeAndMilk\/E+ via Getty Images\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","created":"1733762076","gmt_created":"2024-12-09 16:34:36","changed":"1733762076","gmt_changed":"2024-12-09 16:34:36","alt":"Music and Memory","file":{"fid":"259457","name":"file-20241105-15-catmz0.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/12\/09\/file-20241105-15-catmz0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/12\/09\/file-20241105-15-catmz0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":42175,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/12\/09\/file-20241105-15-catmz0.jpg?itok=pF0O81l6"}}},"media_ids":["675791"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/music-can-change-how-you-feel-about-the-past-239045","title":"Read This Story on The Conversation"}],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"658168","name":"Experts"},{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"},{"id":"443951","name":"School of Psychology"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71881","name":"Science and Technology"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Ch5\u003EAuthor:\u003C\/h5\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/yiren-ren-2210672\u0022 rel=\u0022author\u0022\u003EYiren Ren\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EAdjunct Researcher in Cognitive Brain Science, Georgia Institute of Technology\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch5\u003EMedia Contact:\u003C\/h5\u003E\u003Cp\u003EShelley Wunder-Smith\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:shelley.wunder-smith@research.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Eshelley.wunder-smith@research.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}