Music is deeply woven into the fabric of our lives, often serving as a powerful tool to regulate our emotions, even if we do not consciously reflect on it.

Consider the drive home after a long day at work, your choice of playlist or radio station might help you unwind or re-energise.

On the way to a social event, you might opt for upbeat tracks to get in the mood, while calming classical music might ease your nerves before speaking in public.

These examples highlight that we have accepted music’s transformative impact on our emotional state and how it seamlessly integrates into our daily routines.

This article will explore in greater depth how we use music to manage our emotions, applying the findings within brain injury as a use case.

The impact of brain injury on emotional regulation 

Following brain injury, disorders of emotional regulation are common (McDonald & Genova, 2021; Prigatano, 1992).

This is particularly disabling as it can impact willingness and approach to rehabilitation (Cattran, Oddy & Wood, 2011) and has profound effect not just for the individual, but for their families and the community (Pepping et al., 2024; Corrigan, 1989; Thomsen, 1989; Oddy, Coughlan, Tyerman & Jenkins, 1985; McKinlay et al.,1981).

The prefrontal cortex is a crucial area in the regulation process, influencing the amygdala and other subcortical structures involved in emotion processing (Van der Horn et al., 2016).

Damage to this brain area may impair emotional regulation post-injury causing mood swings, irritability, and difficulty with social interactions.

Musical affect regulation 

One approach to managing this is musical affect regulation.

Musical affect regulation is the use of music to self-regulate affective states such as emotions, moods, and energy levels (Baltazar, 2018).

It is the process of creating, changing, or maintaining any of these affective states  (Baltazar & Saarikallio, 2016). The key aspects of this concept are active engagement, goal orientation and strategies.

Active engagement 

The concept of musical affect regulation underscores that engagement with music is not a passive process, but an active interaction, adapting listening and creative behaviour based on the need to create meaning from it (Baltazar, 2018; Skewes McFerran & Saarikallio, 2014; DeNora, 2000).

This active process was termed ‘musicking’ (Small, 1998) transforming the word from a noun to a verb to demonstrate its interactive aspect.

BPM Rehab’s collaboration with Chroma (Lake, 2024b) demonstrated this active process, with a client creating meaning through music in their song “The Bad Old Days”- a reflection on life before their brain injury.

This intervention not only helped client 1 process trauma from the injury and from life beforehand, but also reignited their passion for music, allowing expression of identity through a reflective, reggae-inspired track.

BPM’s client work has also demonstrated active engagement through music with one of their clients reflecting that they have gained an acute awareness of music’s various components.

They detailed that DJing has influenced the way they listen to music now, prompting a deeper engagement and has inspired them to take up piano lessons and music at school (Naylor, Lake & Giblin, 2024).

This want to carry music on further reflects the deep engagement with it, and the arousal and self-regulative properties that it possesses.

Goal orientation 

Goal orientation within musical affect regulation is the concept that regulation is driven by a goal, consciously or unconsciously (Baltazar, 2018; Tamir 2016; Koole and Rothermund 2011).

Individuals use music in order to reach a desired emotional state (the goal state), such as reduced stress (Baltazar, 2018).

Research has demonstrated the effect of goal oriented music listening, in that it has a significant impact on physiological and psychological functioning, including mood regulation and stress reduction (Thoma, Scholz, Ehlert & Nater, 2012).

Compared to passive listening, goal oriented listening was more effective for this, with these effects persisting over a longer duration.

Strategies

Within music affect regulation, strategies are the approaches taken to reach goals (Koole, 2009).

These strategies can be listening to music, engaging in the music by singing or dancing, or creating music (Lake, 2024a; Van Goethem, 2010).

Previous literature has identified six strategies used when engaging in music for regulation: cognitive work, entertainment, affective work, distraction, revival, and focus on situation (Baltazar, 2018).

BPM demonstrates the strategy of cognitive work when using DJing as a rehabilitative device.

One client reflected on the strategy of cognitive work within music for their memory and confidence, saying: “I’ve got the memory of an elephant for characters, songs, song lyrics, whether they’re in a different language or not’’, to which they credited their recently acquired DJing skills.

They also stated that BPM has aided them with “getting out of my comfort zone to perform more”, showing amazing progress and demonstrating how this strategy is contributing to key changes in their motivation and personal growth (Naylor, Lake & Giblin, 2024).

Using music within brain injury populations

By gaining a deeper understanding of how music supports emotional regulation, we can better appreciate its potential benefits as a tool for managing emotions.

It’s contribution to wellbeing and metal health cannot be understated (Baltazar & Saarikallio, 2016; MacDonald, 2013; DeNora, 2000) affecting emotions and mood (Tahlier, Miron, & Rauscher, 2013; Saarikallio & Erkkilä, 2007) as well as complementary factors such as energy levels, arousal, focus and motivation (Bishop, Karageorghis, & Loizou, 2007; DeNora, 1999).

Expanding from this, music has influence in loneliness and stress (Baltazar et al., 2019; Thoma, Scholz, Ehlert & Nater, 2012), complementing emotional outcomes.

As aforementioned, disorders of emotional regulation are extremely common following brain injuries (Van der Horn et al., 2016).

The positive emotional effects of music offer significant potential for successful rehabilitation and improvement.

Music-based interventions can enhance mood and quality of life in patients with neurological disorders (Raglio et al. 2015; Sarkamo et al., 2008) promoting improvement in executive function and overall emotional adjustment, and lessening of depression, sensation seeking, and anxiety (Thaut et al., 2009).

Furthermore, research suggests that music therapy can induce fine-grained neuroanatomical changes in prefrontal areas, previously discussed as instrumental in emotional regulation.

Conclusion 

The ability of music to influence emotions, mood, and arousal makes it a powerful tool, particularly for individuals with brain injuries, where emotional regulation challenges are prevalent.

The strategies and goal-oriented nature of musical affect regulation, as demonstrated through initiatives like BPM Rehab’s collaborations, highlight music’s potential to foster personal growth, improve mental health, and enhance overall quality of life.

By actively engaging with music through listening, creating, or performing, individuals can address key emotional and cognitive goals, supporting their rehabilitation journey.

Article credit:

Sarah Lake, Research Assistant, BPM Rehab LTD. research@bpm.rehab

Charlotte Naylor, Research Assistant, BPM Rehab LTD

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