Scientific American Mind Article

In the September 13, 2007 Scientific American Mind article “Fact or Fiction: Babies Exposed to Classical Music End Up Smarter," Nikhil Swaminathan explores the research behind the media-fueled “Mozart Effect.” The term was coined in a 1993 by Frances H. Rauscher in a study published in Nature involving college students and the positive effect of listening to a Mozart sonata prior to performing spatial reasoning tasks. Similar studies have been able to replicate these results, whereas others have not. Over the years, Rauscher’s work has been the basis for the development of a growing market targeting parents and those that are expecting. Such is the case with products, such as Disney’s line called Baby Mozart—an offshoot of their Baby Einstein line—, which promotes the progression of early childhood mental development by way of music. It is evident in the advancements of such product lines and certain state laws, such as the one that mandates the distribution of CDs containing classical music to all mothers in Georgia, that the research conducted by Rauscher and his contemporaries have not gone unnoticed. However, there is still a great debate pertaining to the viability of such findings.

Researchers of the 2004 Stanford study that examined this phenomenon concluded that the liaison between music and cognition originates from the “older belief that has been labeled ‘infant determinism,' the idea that a critical period early in development has irreversible consequences for the rest of a child’s life” (Swaminathan, 2007). Critics of such studies have determined that such effects are merely coincidental and only occur on a case-by-case basis. Rauscher himself has said that the Mozart Effect is merely a “myth,” and that children themselves would benefit more if they actually engaged in formal music lessons, as opposed to passively listening to symphonies. Incidently, such opposition from the scientific community has done nothing to sway the ever-growing market that links music and children’s intellect. Swaminathan ends the article with a caveat about the growing market, stating that the use of such products should not substitute for a parent’s intrinsic role to stimulate and engage a child’s mind through social activity.

I found Swaminathan’s article particularly intriguing because I, personally, was exposed to many years of music education as a child. Although I cannot know how I would have been impacted had I not taken instrumental lessons, I believe that such an experience has definitely contributed to the development of my sense of focus and self-discipline. I agree with Rauscher when he states that musical instruction can help increase children’s cognitive skills more so than passively listening to classical music. The complex pathway in which the eyes visualize musical notes and transpose it into the rapid movement of fingers on the ivory keys of a piano is truly a reflection of the vast intricacies of the human brain.