Abstract
Previous studies have shown inconsistent results regarding the effects of background music (BGM) on task performance. Ichimura, Hirai, and Mizuno (2022) suggested that self-choice of BGM could enhance intrinsic motivation regardless of musical elements. The current study manipulated the emotional valence of the music (happy vs. sad conditions) to examine whether the self-choice effect is observed equally under both conditions. We conducted an online experiment with 148 university students assigned to either the happy or sad condition. Participants performed a sustained attention task under three conditions: self-choice BGM, randomly selected BGM, and no BGM. The results showed a main effect of BGM on intrinsic motivation, with higher scores in the self-choice condition, followed by the random and no BGM conditions. However, we found no main effect of emotional valence or interaction. We suggest that the self-choice of BGM has a more significant impact on intrinsic motivation than emotional valence.
