According to recent findings published by Concordia University researchers, the desire to groove to music is an innate physiological reaction that operates independently of our overall enjoyment of music. Even individuals who suffer from musical anhedonia—those who typically experience little to no pleasure from music—are not immune to this groove response. This phenomenon was the focus of a paper authored by Isaac Romkey, a PhD candidate in the Department of Psychology at Concordia, and published in the journal PLOS One. Romkey’s research suggests that the elements of experiencing groove, namely pleasure and the compulsion to move, which are often linked, might be distinct.
Romkey, alongside his team, set out to explore these responses by presenting over fifty brief musical excerpts to individuals diagnosed with musical anhedonia and to a control group without this condition. The selection criteria ensured that the participants with anhedonia enjoyed other life pleasures, such as food and sex, and exhibited typical reward responses in different assessments. It was also verified that these participants were not suffering from depression and had normal abilities to perceive pitch and rhythm. During the study, each musical piece varied in rhythmic complexity and was played to provoke a groove response. After listening, participants were asked to rate their pleasure level and impulse to move.
Under normal circumstances, Romkey noted, responses to rhythmic complexity likely form an inverted U-shape; that is, people tend to feel the urge to move to music with moderately complex rhythms rather than to very simple or highly complex rhythms. From this, the researchers predicted that anhedonic individuals might report lower pleasure levels but maintain typical responses in their urge to move when exposed to groovy music.
Contrary to expectations, the study found no significant difference in pleasure or movement urge between anhedonics and the control group. More strikingly, for anhedonics, the urge to move was preserved and a key factor in experiencing pleasure. This discovery suggests that even when the sensation of pleasure is diminished, as seen in individuals with musical anhedonia, the physical impulse to move can compensate and enhance enjoyment.
Furthermore, Romkey observed no flattening in the anticipated U-shaped curve among the anhedonic group. This implies that despite their condition, individuals with musical anhedonia may still derive pleasure, specifically from moving to music. This implication indicates that the physical urge to move could generate pleasure.
The underlying causes of musical anhedonia are still poorly understood, though Romkey mentions that there might be a genetic component. He also references studies that associate the urge to move with the dorsal striatum—a brain area linked to motor functions. In contrast, the sensation of pleasure is more connected with the ventral striatum, which regulates rewards, motivation, and goal-directed activities. Looking ahead, Romkey plans to delve deeper into the differences in brain connectivity between those with musical anhedonia and those without, using advanced imaging techniques such as MRI and magnetoencephalography to study the dorsal and ventral striatal regions. This future research could provide further insights into how our brains process and respond to music, potentially leading to a better understanding of musical anhedonia and its treatment.
More information: Isaac Romkey et al, The pleasurable urge to move to music is unchanged in people with musical anhedonia, PLOS One. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0312030
Journal information: PLOS One Provided by Concordia University
