The Effects of Drawing, Listening, and Writing on Mood
Poster Number
06
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Department
Psychology
Faculty Mentor
Merry Sleigh, Ph.D.
Abstract
Moods have the power to affect how a person views the world and may be more influential in directing a person’s life than the actual events that the person encounters (Burke, 2013; Thayer, 1997). This study compared the effectiveness of four mood management strategies. Participants (n = 139) were primed, using a written exercise, to be in a negative mood and then completed the PANAS (Positive and Negative Affect Scale; Watson, Clark, & Tellegen, 1988), which confirmed that the priming had elicited similar negative moods across conditions. Each participant was then assigned to a mood management condition (music listening, nature listening, written reframing, drawing) or a control condition. Immediately afterward, participants completed the same mood assessment. Results revealed that music listening was most influential in decreasing a negative mood. Writing and music listening were both equally effective and more effective than the other strategies in increasing a positive mood. Nature listening was least effective in improving mood. Music changed participants’ moods and participants accurately perceived the greatest mood change in the music condition. Participants also exhibited inaccurate perceptions. The control changed the least in actual mood change scores but perceived that they changed as much as participants in the music condition. When participants were asked about usefulness of strategies in real-life, they ranked music as their top choice, reflecting some everyday usage of this helpful strategy. This study supports the findings of previous research, showing that listening to music and writing are very powerful mood-improving strategies.
Start Date
24-4-2015 3:20 PM
End Date
24-4-2015 4:50 PM
The Effects of Drawing, Listening, and Writing on Mood
Richardson Ballroom
Moods have the power to affect how a person views the world and may be more influential in directing a person’s life than the actual events that the person encounters (Burke, 2013; Thayer, 1997). This study compared the effectiveness of four mood management strategies. Participants (n = 139) were primed, using a written exercise, to be in a negative mood and then completed the PANAS (Positive and Negative Affect Scale; Watson, Clark, & Tellegen, 1988), which confirmed that the priming had elicited similar negative moods across conditions. Each participant was then assigned to a mood management condition (music listening, nature listening, written reframing, drawing) or a control condition. Immediately afterward, participants completed the same mood assessment. Results revealed that music listening was most influential in decreasing a negative mood. Writing and music listening were both equally effective and more effective than the other strategies in increasing a positive mood. Nature listening was least effective in improving mood. Music changed participants’ moods and participants accurately perceived the greatest mood change in the music condition. Participants also exhibited inaccurate perceptions. The control changed the least in actual mood change scores but perceived that they changed as much as participants in the music condition. When participants were asked about usefulness of strategies in real-life, they ranked music as their top choice, reflecting some everyday usage of this helpful strategy. This study supports the findings of previous research, showing that listening to music and writing are very powerful mood-improving strategies.
