The impact of emotionally valenced music on emotional state and EEG profile: Convergence of self-report and quantitative data

Abstract

Musical stimuli can induce a variety of emotions in individuals. We sought to determine whether different valenced music would induce EEG profile changes and self-reported emotional states in individuals following the viewing of a complex video with a concrete narrative and emotional ambivalence. We used a five-minute video titled "El Empleo", coupled with either joyful, fearful, or no music. EEG recordings were taken throughout the duration of the experiment and a self-reported questionnaire on emotional state was administered after viewing of the video. We found self-reported measures of happiness increased following viewing of the video paired with joyful music, while EEG data demonstrated that the following brain regions displayed significant changes in activity following both fearful and joyful music: the right inferior parietal lobule, left uncus, and left insula. Additionally, we found that anxiety self-report scores correlated negatively with average gamma activity within the insula within each group. The convergence of self-reported data and quantitative EEG data was consistent across 27 participants. These data indicate that different valenced music can alter EEG activity in emotion specific regions, reflected in participants perceived emotional state.

Keywords: Beta frequency; Electroencephalograph; Emotional processing; Insula; Uncus.