6 WAYS YOUR BRAIN TRANSFORMS SOUND INTO EMOTION

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THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN SOUND & EMOTION

SOME SOUNDS EVOKE UNIVERSAL EMOTIONSUCLA researchers have found that certain sounds are universally associated across cultures with:

▪ Amusement

▪ Fear

▪ Anger

▪ Disgust

▪ Sadness

▪ Surprise

WHILE OTHER SOUNDS DEPEND ON THE INDIVIDUAL

Bidgee [CC BY-SA 3.0 au (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/au/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons

The sound of thunder evokes either a feeling of relaxation or anxiety.

Fireworks evoke either a feeling of nostalgia or anxiety.

By Frank Vincentz (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

By Victorgrigas (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

The sound of a vibrating cell phone is perceived either as annoying or exciting.

WHY DO EMOTIONAL REACTIONS TO SOUND VARY BY INDIVIDUAL?

LUND UNIVERSITY RESEARCHResearchers from Sweden’s Lund University identified 6 psychological mechanisms by which sound evokes emotions and helps to explain why the reaction is sometimes universal and sometimes dependent on the person.

The 6 mechanisms:

1. Brainstem Reflex

2. Evaluative Conditioning

3. Emotional Contagion

4. Visual Imagery

5. Episodic Memory

6. Music Expectancy

Henry Vandyke Carter [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

When you hear a loud, unexpected, abrupt sound, you are immediately compelled to investigate.

This reaction is hard-wired into your brain to alert you to immediately respond to potentially dangerous or important sounds.

BRAINSTEM REFLEX

EVALUATIVE CONDITIONING

By Allan Ajifo [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

A song played during your wedding day may bring feelings of joy…

Photo by Tijl Vercaemer: https://www.flickr.com/photos/skender/1242203613

While the same song heard during a funeral will produce the opposite feelings of sadness.

EMOTIONAL CONTAGION

Photo by Richard foster: https://www.flickr.com/photos/93963757@N05/8551937456

Research in the 1990s discovered “mirror neurons” that activate in our brains when we watch someone perform an action.

That’s why it’s hard to not smile and laugh when you see others doing the same.

VISUAL IMAGERY

Photo by Johntex, 2006. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gentle_waves_come_in_at_a_sandy_beach.JPG

Sounds can evoke images which in turn evoke emotions.

For example, do you enjoy listening to the sounds of nature?

Try listening to an audio recording of waves crashing and NOT visualizing yourself lounging at the beach.

EPISODIC MEMORY

Sound can trigger both good and bad memories, depending on how the sound was paired with a single event.

That’s why the sound of lightning can create fear and anxiety in those suffering from post-traumatic-stress-disorder from combat experience, for example.

By TraumaAndDissociation: https://www.flickr.com/photos/traumaanddissociation/15799064142

MUSIC EXPECTANCY

Ktims at the English language Wikipedia: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:C_sharp_and_double_sharp_music.svg

Music is nothing more than a random assortment of sounds…

Music is emotionally appealing only because your brain imposes order and structure to the sounds…

Your expectations about rhythm and melody provide this order and structure, and therefore your emotional reaction.

SOUND, EMOTION, AND HEARING LOSS

HEARING LOSSWhen you lose your hearing, you not only lose the ability to hear sounds…

You also lose the emotional impact associated with those sounds.

THE EFFECTS OF HEARING LOSS

By Mwanner (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

During hikes, you miss out on the faint sounds of flowing water.

By Vancouver 125 - The City of Vancouver from Vancouver, Canada [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Music loses its emotional punch when you can’t hear certain instruments.

By Ben Schumin (Flickr: Mircom Fire Alarm Horn/Strobe) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

You increase your risk of injury when you can’t hear alarms.

TREATING HEARING LOSS

The bottom line: hearing is more important to our lives—and to our emotional lives—than we probably realize. It also means that treating your hearing loss will probably have a greater impact than you realize, too.

What are some of your favorite sounds? What emotions do they evoke?