Music and Autonomic Nervous System (Dys)Function
Open accessAbstract
DESPITE A WEALTH OF EVIDENCE FOR THE INVOLVEMENT of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) in health and disease and the ability of music to affect ANS activity, few studies have systematically explored the therapeutic effects of music on ANS dysfunction. Furthermore, when ANS activity is quantified and analyzed, it is usually from a point of convenience rather than from an understanding of its physiological basis. After a review of the experimental and therapeutic literatures exploring music and the ANS, a "Neurovisceral Integration" perspective on the interplay between the central and autonomic nervous systems is introduced, and the associated implications for physiological, emotional, and cognitive health are explored. The construct of heart rate variability is discussed both as an example of this complex interplay and as a useful metric for exploring the sometimes subtle effect of music on autonomic response. Suggestions for future investigations using musical interventions are offered based on this integrative account.
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Positive SNS effects of listening to music are not consistently reported.
“However, positive SNS effects of listening to music are not consistently reported [30,31].”
From The Effect of Music on the Human Stress Response (2013) · cites this paper as [31]
In “Listening to Music” (Experimental; page unavailable), the review says that decreases in heart rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure with sedative music are inconsistently reported. That supports the inconsistency claim, but the passage does not identify these outcomes specifically as positive sympathetic nervous system (SNS) effects. (LLM, conf=0.82)
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References 59 · Cited by 170
Research works printed but not linked: 40
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- Authors
- Ellis, R. J., & Thayer, J. F.
- Affiliations
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (US)
- The Ohio State University (US)
- Venue
- Music Perception
- Publisher
- University of California Press
- Published
- 2010-04-01
- Volume
- 27
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 317-326
- ISSN
- 0730-7829 (ISSN-L)
- 1533-8312
- PMC
- PMC3011183
- OpenAlex
- W1966532411
- Cited by
- 170
- References
- 59
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 24 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 10 · 2012: 9
- FWCI
- 10.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Music Perception An Interdisciplinary Journal (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (R01DC009823, R01DC008796)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Music Therapy and Health
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Heart Rate Variability and Autonomic Control
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Music Perception
- Keywords
- music, autonomic nervous system, autonomic dysfunction, music therapy, neurovisceral integration, heart rate variability, emotional well-being, cognitive health, physiological health
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