Individuals demonstrate manifestly different preferences in music, and yet relatively little is known about the underlying structure of those preferences. Here, we introduce a model of musical preferences based on listeners’ affective reactions to excerpts of music from a wide variety of musical genres.
The findings from three independent studies converged to suggest that there exists a latent five-factor structure underlying music preferences that is genre-free, and reflects primarily emotional/affective responses to music. We have interpreted and labeled these factors as: 1) a Mellow factor comprising smooth and relaxing styles 2) an Urban factor defined largely by rhythmic and percussive music, such as is found in rap, funk, and acid jazz 3) a Sophisticated factor that includes classical, operatic, world, and jazz 4) an Intense factor defined by loud, forceful, and energetic music and 5) a Campestral factor comprising a variety of different styles of direct, and rootsy music such as is often found in country and singer-songwriter genres. The findings from a fourth study suggest that preferences for the MUSIC factors are affected by both the social and auditory characteristics of the music.
It is piped into retail shops, airports, and train stations. It accompanies movies, television programs, and ball games. Manufacturers use it to sell their products, while yoga, massage, and exercise studios use it to relax or invigorate their clients. In addition to all of these uses of music as a background, a form of sonic wallpaper imposed on us by others, many of us seek out music for our own listening – indeed, Americans spend more on music than they do on prescription drugs ( Huron, 2001).
Taken together, background and intentional music listening add up to more than 5 hours a day of exposure to music for the average American ( Levitin, 2006 McCormick, 2009). When it comes to self-selected music, individuals demonstrate manifestly different tastes. Remarkably, however, little is known about the underlying principles on which such individual musical preferences are based. A challenge to such an investigation is that music is used for many different purposes. One common use of music in contemporary society is pure enjoyment and aesthetic appreciation ( Kohut & Levarie, 1950), another common use relates to music’s ability to inspire dance and physical movement ( Dwyer, 1995 Large, 2000 Ronström, 1999). Many individuals also use music functionally, for mood regulation and enhancement ( North & Hargreaves, 1996b Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003 Roe, 1985). Adolescents report that they use music for a distraction from troubles, a means of mood management, for reducing loneliness, and as a badge of identity for inter- and intragroup self-definition ( Bleich, Zillman & Weaver, 1991 Rentfrow & Gosling, 2006 2007 Rentfrow, McDonald, & Oldmeadow, 2009 Zillmann & Gan, 1997). As adolescents and young adults, we tend to listen to music that our friends listen to, and this contributes to defining our social identity as well as our adult musical tastes and preferences ( Creed & Scully, 2000 North & Hargreaves, 1999 Tekman & Hortaçsu, 2002).
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