want to be a better driver? learn how to play an instrument

researchers found that beginners who practised the piano for one hour a week for 11 weeks became better at almost everything they did, including driving a vehicle.

by dave yasvinski

published dec 28, 2022

2 minute read

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2 minute read

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learning an instrument also lowers anxiety and stress

the study found that the people learning the piano had less depression, anxiety and stress. getty

in addition to making you the life of the party, a small study has found that learning how to play an instrument can lead to less depression, stress and anxiety. the research, published in the journal nature scientific reports, also found that beginners who practised playing the piano for one hour a week over the course of 11 weeks became better at processing sights and sounds. as a person’s multi-sensory processing improves, they become better at almost everything they do, from driving a vehicle to crossing the street to locating a friend in a crowd.

“we know that playing and listening to music often brings joy to our lives, but with this study we were interested in learning more about the direct effects a short period of music learning can have on our cognitive abilities,” said karin petrini, a cognitive psychologist and music specialist at the university of bath’s department of psychology.

to this end, the team devised a randomized control study that split 31 adults into three groups: an intervention group that received weekly piano training and two control groups that either listened to music or completed homework in silence.

each one-hour training session for the piano group involved learning finger exercises for 20 minutes before being taught songs from the abrsm 2017-2018 piano grade one exam list for 40 minutes. training occurred on a one-to-one basis and participants were required to fully learn a song correctly and fluently before progressing to the next one.

researchers found that the group assigned to the piano experienced an enhanced ability to process multi-sensory information within just a few weeks of the study’s start. they displayed greater accuracy on tests where a person is required to determine whether a sound or vision ‘event’ occurs at the same time. this fine-tuning of cognitive abilities, which was evident for simple events (flashes and beeps) to more complex (a person speaking), was not present in the group that just listened to the same music or the group that studied in silence.

in addition to experiencing a cognitive boost, the piano players exhibited less depression, anxiety and stress on tests conducted after lessons began than on those taken before.

after witnessing the abundance of benefits, the team is confident that learning how to play an instrument can make a real difference in the lives of people who struggle with their mental health. they are currently working on a followup study to explore the potential of musical training as a form of therapy.

“learning to play an instrument like the piano is a complex task: it requires a musician to read a score, generate movements and monitor the auditory and tactile feedback to adjust their further actions,” petrini said. “in scientific terms, the process couples visual with auditory cues and results in a multi-sensory training for individuals.

“the findings from our study suggest that this has a significant, positive impact on how the brain processes audiovisual information even in adulthood when brain plasticity is reduced.”

dave yasvinski is a writer with healthing.ca

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