Psychology of music preference

The psychology of music preference is the study of the psychological factors behind peoples' different music preferences. One study found that after researching through studies from the past 50 years, there are more than 500 functions for music.^[1] Music is heard by people daily in many parts of the world, and affects people in various ways from emotional regulation to cognitive development, along with providing a means for self-expression. Music training has been shown to help improve intellectual development and ability, though minimal connection has been found as to how it affects emotion regulation.^[2] Numerous studies have been conducted to show that individual personality can have an effect on music preference, though a recent meta-analysis has shown that personality in itself explains little variance in music preferences.^[3] These studies are not limited to American culture, as they have been conducted with significant results in countries all over the world, including Japan,^[4] Germany,^[5] Spain,^[6] and Brazil.^[7]