Working Memory in Musicians Versus Non- musicians: A Diffe rential Study Using the N-back Task
Year: 2014
Type: conference-paper
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: The current study investigates whether long-term musical training and practice are associated with greater working memory abilities. Other studies have shown that musicians have cognitive advantages over non-musicians, including working memory. Forty-six college-aged participants were given an auditory-spatial n-back test. The n-back test requires participants to determine whether or not each auditory and spatial stimulus in a sequence matches the stimulus n stimuli ago. In this study, n=2. Participants were classified as either a musician or non-musician based on their years of musical training. Comparing n-back scores between musicians and non-musicians showed no significant findings. Since other studies have shown that musicians do have better working memory skills, this study may have lacked true professional musicians and a large sample size.
Author: Kara Nonnemacher
Language: English
Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2119138471