The effect of music familiarity on preschoolers’ heart rate during musical engagement: preliminary report

Young children's heart rates (HR) have been shown to decrease, and heart rate variability (HRV) has been shown to become suppressed, in response to new stimuli. This response has been documented when children experience novel physical objects as well as novel aural stimuli, giving cause to wonder whether novel musical stimuli would be accompanied by cardiovascular changes. The purpose of this study was to (1) document children's HR and HRV in a naturalistic setting (early childhood music classes), (2) conduct analyses to ascertain whether HR and HRV are associated with the level of familiarity of musical material among study participants, and (3) draw recommendations for follow-up research based on methods used in this preliminary study. Seven children, ages 3-5, engaged in 30-min music classes, once-per-week for eight consecutive weeks, while wearing heart rate monitors. Findings included a notable synchronization of heart rate across children and in response to the musical content of classes. Analysis of variance revealed that heart rates during unfamiliar music were significantly lower than during transitions or familiar music; however, a random effects linear panel model did not detect a significant difference between the heart rate means in the varying familiarity/transitional states. Recommendations for follow-up research include employing a more complex analytical model in order to better capture the serial correlation and moving trend of the heart rate data, incorporating technology that produces continuous heart rate tracking and can be employed in naturalistic settings, and engaging with a larger sample in order to determine the extent to which changes in heart rate during music classes may be associated with the familiarity of the musical material.