Music and Memories
Disciplines
Cognitive Psychology | Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences
Abstract (300 words maximum)
Music Evoked Autobiographical Memories (MEAMs) refer to the intriguing idea of music triggering an automatic recall of an event or moment in someone’s life that corresponds with the music. Over the course of research about these memories, however, one common thread has become apparent and it’s that of the “Reminiscence Bump Effect” (Platz 2015). Platz (2015) discussed how he saw that songs heard between the ages of 15-24 had a stronger relationship with musically evoked autobiographical memories than songs heard at any other age. This study sought to explore the concept of the Reminiscence Bump Effect and to see if we could find a more specific age range for the positively and fondly remembered music.
A questionnaire was given to participants asking about background, such as demographics and generational identity. This survey then went on to ask participants to reflect and write about their memories tied to specific songs. The participants were asked what the song was, and they were asked to tell the memories associated with it, how old they were in these memories, and if the recall was automatic or manual. Participants were 179 adults (76% female, 21.8% male, and 1.7% nonbinary or other). When participants were asked how old they were in these memories, 38% of participants said they had memories with music occur between the ages of 16 and 20, 34% said it was between the ages of of 5 and 10, and 19% said it was between the ages of 11 and 15. Analyses were run using SPSS, and significant correlations were found to uphold the Reminiscence Bump Effect.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
RCHSS - Psychological Science
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Nicole Martin
Additional Faculty
n/a
Music and Memories
Music Evoked Autobiographical Memories (MEAMs) refer to the intriguing idea of music triggering an automatic recall of an event or moment in someone’s life that corresponds with the music. Over the course of research about these memories, however, one common thread has become apparent and it’s that of the “Reminiscence Bump Effect” (Platz 2015). Platz (2015) discussed how he saw that songs heard between the ages of 15-24 had a stronger relationship with musically evoked autobiographical memories than songs heard at any other age. This study sought to explore the concept of the Reminiscence Bump Effect and to see if we could find a more specific age range for the positively and fondly remembered music.
A questionnaire was given to participants asking about background, such as demographics and generational identity. This survey then went on to ask participants to reflect and write about their memories tied to specific songs. The participants were asked what the song was, and they were asked to tell the memories associated with it, how old they were in these memories, and if the recall was automatic or manual. Participants were 179 adults (76% female, 21.8% male, and 1.7% nonbinary or other). When participants were asked how old they were in these memories, 38% of participants said they had memories with music occur between the ages of 16 and 20, 34% said it was between the ages of of 5 and 10, and 19% said it was between the ages of 11 and 15. Analyses were run using SPSS, and significant correlations were found to uphold the Reminiscence Bump Effect.