'Let the Music Play' – Experimental Study on Background Music and Time Preference

Abstract

Music plays a significant role in human life. Background music surrounds us in many places, in restaurants, shopping centers and even at work. The literature suggests that background music can influence an individual’s decision-making process. In the current study we asked participants to complete a questionnaire about their time preference, while listing to background music. There were three different treatments (fast music, slow music and no music), and our findings indicate that participants exposed to a faster tempo have a higher present preference than those exposed to slow music or none at all. Our analysis showed that although impulsiveness is related to time preference and was affected by the music, it was not a mediator between background music and time preference. We suggest that time preference changes due to cognitive processes and decision avoidance.

Keywords: Background music, tempo of music, time preference, impulsiveness, inter-temporal decisions

JEL Classification: D91