108

The
British
Psychological
British Journal of Psychology (2011), 102, 108–134

C 2010 The British Psychological Society
Society

www.wileyonlinelibrary.com

Why do we listen to music? A uses

and gratifications analysis

Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North∗

School of Life Sciences, Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh, UK

Four ‘uses and gratifications’ studies investigated peoples’ reasons for listening to music
(Study 1); and whether these reasons differ significantly from those associated with other
leisure activities (Study 2). In Study 3, an open-ended, qualitative research design was
used to investigate why people listen to music. In Study 4, a cross-sectional design was
used to investigate the possibility that people of different ages might listen to music for
different reasons. Findings showed that there are a number of reasons why participants
listen to music, comparison of which indicated that participants listen to music primarily
to manage/regulate their moods. Comparison with other leisure activities indicated
that for the most part, listening to music was rated better than other leisure activities
at serving an individual’s different needs. This versatility may explain why music is so
important to people. Evidence was also found to suggest that the reasons for listening
to music may change as people grow older.

People spend enormous amounts of time and money listening to music. Despite the
continued growth of on-line and offline piracy and several years of declining sales, in
2008, the global recorded music market was estimated to be worth around US $17.6
billion (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, 2009). Several surveys
highlight high levels of music consumption (see Zillmann & Gan, 1997, for a review), and
the particular importance that adolescents ascribe to music (Fitzgerald, Joseph, Hayes, &
O’Regan, 1995). However, surprisingly little empirical research has been done to explain
why this is.
Research indicates that people listen to music for a wide variety of different reasons.
For example, Gantz, Gartenberg, Pearson, and Schiller (1978) found that adolescents
listened to relieve tension, pass the time, fill uncomfortable silences, alleviate feelings of
loneliness, manage their mood, and relieve boredom. Roe’s (1985) retrospective study
showed that Swedish children listened to music for similar reasons, namely to create
a ‘good atmosphere’, control moods, fill silences, and pass the time. Passing the time
was also found to be the main reason why Sun and Lull’s (1986) sample of adolescents
watched music videos.

∗ Correspondence should be addressed to Dr Adrian C. North, School of Life Sciences, Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh
EH14 4AS, UK (e-mail: [email protected]).

DOI:10.1348/000712610X506831
 Music uses and gratifications 109

Although undoubtedly important in providing an initial insight as to why adoles-

cents listen to music, these studies are now somewhat dated. Recent technological
developments (e.g., the CD, the Internet, the iPod) have made listening to music
increasingly accessible, convenient, portable, and cheap. Indeed, the advent of new
digital technologies has led to opportunities for people to use music in ways that simply
did not exist 20 years ago. For example, Bull (2005) argues that the iPod now offers
the listener the unprecedented ability to continually readjust their mood whilst ‘on the
move’, which previously was not possible with earlier music formats limited by their
restricted mobility, and access to musical choices.
Recent trends within music psychology have led to a re-evaluation of the role
of social psychological factors. For example, Hargreaves and North (1997, 1999) are
among many to have suggested that research over recent decades has largely ignored
the social functions of music at the expense of its’ cognitive and emotional functions.
Hargreaves and North (1999) concluded that music served three social functions; used
by individuals to help manage their moods, self-identity, and interpersonal relationships.
North, Hargreaves, and O’Neill (2000) supported this idea, showing that a sample of 13-
to 14-year-olds listened to music to portray a social image to others, and to fulfil their
emotional needs. Similarly, Tarrant, North, and Hargreaves (2000) showed that American
and English adolescents listened to music to satisfy both emotional and social needs, as
well as for reasons of self-actualization.
These studies were all conducted according to the assumptions of the ‘uses and
gratifications approach’.
Uses and gratifications research (Katz, Blumer, & Gurevitch, 1974) is an approach
used originally by sociologists to investigate how people use the mass media to satisfy
their individual needs. To do this, uses and gratifications research simply asks participants
to report the reasons that apply to them. The main assumption of this approach is
that individuals actively use the media to serve their needs, rather than being passive
recipients. Furthermore, individuals are assumed ‘sufficiently self-aware’ to report their
motives, or at least recognize them when asked to rate a number of possible motives.
Finally, the uses and gratifications model also claims that all media compete with one
another to fulfil an individual’s need, together with more conventional means (e.g., social
interaction) of achieving this.
The four ‘uses and gratifications’ studies reported here investigated adolescents’
reasons for listening to music (Study 1); and whether these reasons differ significantly
from those associated with other leisure activities (Study 2). In Study 3, an open-ended
qualitative research design was used to investigate why people listen to music. Study 4
also investigated the possibility that people of different ages might listen to music for
different reasons.

STUDY 1: WHY DO PEOPLE LISTEN TO MUSIC?

Previous uses and gratifications studies concerned with why people listen to music (e.g.,
Gantz et al., 1978; Tarrant et al., 2000) have all asked participants to rate a number
of different reasons for listening to music. These reasons were selected according
to researchers’ discretion, their use in previous studies, or on the basis of informal
discussions with participants in pilot research. As such, the items to which participants
could respond were limited – they reflect, respectively, the opinions of the researcher,
the opinions of previous researchers, and the opinions of only pilot participants – and
110 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

these may or may not represent an exhaustive list of the true uses and gratifications of
music. Specifically, of the five studies cited most commonly (Gantz et al., 1978; North
et al., 2000; Roe, 1985; Sun & Lull, 1986; Tarrant et al., 2000), a mean of only 12 reasons
were used. It would be surprising indeed if these 12 items were sufficient to capture the
range of uses and gratifications that music might serve. In view of these criticisms, this
first study investigated why people listen to music using a much broader list of potential
reasons, selected according to an established model of media gratifications.
McQuail, Blumer, and Brown (1972) suggest that in general the needs served by the
mass media fall into any of four categories: (1) surveillance (i.e., the need to find out
what’s going on in the world around us); (2) personal identity (i.e., the need to find out
who we are); (3) personal relationships (i.e., the need to interact with others); and (4)
diversion (i.e., the need for escapism, entertainment, and relaxation). Past research has
also highlighted repeatedly that mood management is an important reason why people
listen to music (e.g., Gantz et al., 1978; North et al., 2000; Roe, 1985). Accordingly, the
reasons for listening to music used in the present study were selected according to an
adapted version of McQuail et al.’s (1972) model of media gratifications, such that the
list of reasons presented to participants represented five factors, namely, surveillance,
personal identity, personal relationships, diversion, and mood management.

Method
Participants
A total of 300 undergraduate students (150 males, 150 females) participated in the study
voluntarily. Participants’ mean age was 21.31 years (SD = 2.75).

Materials and procedure

Participants completed a questionnaire designed especially for the present study. The
questionnaire was completed in a university campus library, and took approximately
3–4 min to complete.
The questionnaire first asked participants to rate how important music was in their
everyday life. Ratings were given on an 11-point scale (0 = Not at all important and
10 = Extremely important). In addition to this, participants were also asked to indicate
the hours per day they normally spent listening to music and the amount of money (UK
£ per month) normally spent listening to music (i.e., musical recordings and concerts).
Participants were then presented with a 30-item scale, and asked to rate the extent
to which each statement accurately described why they listened to music. Ratings were
given on an 11-point scale (0 = Not at all and 10 = Completely). Six statements were
used for each of the five factors in the proposed model of music gratifications: (1)
surveillance (e.g., ‘To keep up with current events’); (2) personal identity (e.g., ‘To
express my identity’); (3) personal relationships (e.g., ‘To have something to talk about
with others’); (4) diversion (e.g., ‘To take my mind off things’); (5) mood management
(e.g., ‘To make me feel better’). The 30 statements were presented in a randomized
order.

Results and discussion

Ratings indicated that listening to music was regarded as an important aspect of
the participants’ everyday lives (M = 7.65, SD = 1.90). On average, participants
 Music uses and gratifications 111

reported spending 3.66 h per day listening to music (SD = 3.37), and spending UK
£8.80 on music every month (SD = 12.17). This level of music consumption is
much higher than found previously (North et al., 2000; Sun & Lull, 1986; Tarrant
et al., 2000), although this is most likely because of the undergraduate sample
used.
Participants were asked to rate how accurately 30 reasons described why they
listen to music. A factor analysis was conducted on participants’ responses. Vari-
max rotation of the principal components showed there were six different factors
with eigenvalues greater than one, and together accounted for 64.47% of variance
present in participants’ ratings. Factor loadings greater than 0.30 are shown in
Table 1.
These loadings suggest that Factor 1 might be interpreted as ‘negative mood manage-
ment’, where music is used to alleviate negative feelings and for mood enhancement.
Factor 2 might be interpreted as ‘personal identity’, where music is used for identity
development or to portray a social image to others. Factor 3 might be interpreted as
‘surveillance’, where music is used to learn about things. Factor 4 might be interpreted
as ‘positive mood management’, where music is used to achieve and optimize positive
moods. Factor 5 might be interpreted as ‘interpersonal relationships’, where music
is used to promote and maintain social interaction. Factor 6 might be interpreted as
‘diversion’, where music is used as a distraction to relieve boredom or to simply pass the
time. Although similar to three-factor models identified previously (North et al., 2000;
Tarrant et al., 2000), this six-factor model arguably highlights with greater subtlety the
different reasons why people listen to music. One reason for this is that participants
in this study were asked to rate a longer list of reasons to describe why they listen to
music.
In keeping with past research (e.g., Gantz et al., 1978; Roe, 1985; North et al.,
2000), mood management was an important reason why participants listened to
music. However, in this case, participants’ ratings seemed to distinguish between the
management of positive and negative moods. This distinction highlights more precisely
the way in which music is used to regulate our moods. Specifically, the two factors
suggest that people use music both as a means to cope with, and alleviate negative
feelings (e.g., anxiety, loneliness, stress, etc.), as well as a way for individuals to create
and optimize a positive mood (e.g., to relax).
The remaining four factors correspond with McQuail et al.’s (1972) model of
media gratifications that was used to provide a theoretical framework for the current
investigation. So with the exception of mood management, participants were found
listen to music for any of four main reasons: (1) personal identity; (2) interpersonal
relationships; (3) surveillance; and (4) diversion. As such, the present findings indicate
that the uses and gratifications associated with listening to music can be explained in a
similar manner to those associated with other media.
For some reason, none of the previous uses and gratifications studies extend their
investigation of why people listen to music beyond the use a of factor analysis. Factor
analysis of participants’ ratings simply allows us to identify the different reasons for
listening, but crucially fail to tell us which of these reasons are most important to
people. In view of this, a within-subjects ANOVA was used to test whether mean scores
for each factor differed significantly. This was found to be significant (F(5,1495) =
746.63, p < .001). Table 2 shows the mean rating given to each of the six factors ranked
in descending order.
112 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

Table 1. Factor analysis of participants’ reasons for listening to music

Bonferroni pairwise comparisons were subsequently carried out to establish where

these significant differences were.1 These comparisons showed that there were sig-
nificant differences between mean ratings for all six factors, with the exception of
a non-significant difference between the mean ratings given on the ‘diversion’, and

1 Contact author for details of Bonferroni pairwise between the six factors.
 Music uses and gratifications 113

Table 2. Mean rating for each of the six factors identified

‘negative mood management’ factors. Overall, these comparisons indicate that the
functions of music are primarily emotional, whilst the social functions of music (i.e.,
interpersonal relationships and personal identity) seem to be of secondary importance
to this.
A MANOVA was also used to investigate if male and female participants listen to music
for different reasons. Measures of music’s everyday importance, music consumption
were used as dependent variables, together with participants’ scores on each of the
30 individual reasons and the six factors identified. A significant difference was found
(F(33, 266) = 1.67, p < .05). Univariate analysis showed that males report spending
significantly more money on music every month (£10.73 (13.90)) than females (£6.87
(9.81)) (F(1,298) = 7.75, p < .01). In addition, females were found significantly more
likely to report listening to music ‘to pass the time’ (7.10 (2.34)), than males (6.40 (2.43))
(F(1, 298) = 5.85, p < .05).

STUDY 2: IS MUSIC SPECIAL? A COMPARISON OF THE USES AND

GRATIFICATIONS OF MUSIC AND OTHER LEISURE ACTIVITIES
As noted earlier, several studies indicated that people (and adolescents in particular)
spend a significant amount of time and money listening to music, and value music
highly. This is particularly interesting given that the uses and gratifications approach
assumes that different media and leisure activities are likely to compete with each other
to satisfy an individual’s needs. Given this assumption, and the importance of music,
it is reasonable to expect that the uses and gratifications served by listening to music
are different to those associated with other leisure activities. Accordingly, using the
six-factor model of gratifications identified in Study 1, the present study investigated
whether the reasons why people listen to music differ significantly from other media
and leisure activities.

Method
Participants
A total of 117 undergraduate psychology students (27 males, 90 females) participated
in the study as part of their course requirement. Participants’ mean age was 19.85 years
(SD = 1.03).
114 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

Materials
Participants completed a questionnaire that asked them to rate how important each of
the nine different leisure activities investigated was in their everyday life (see Table 3,
for a list). Ratings were given on an 11-point scale (0 = Not at all important and 10 =
Extremely important). Participants were also asked to indicate the hours per day, and
money (UK £ per month) they normally spent engaged in each activity.
A 30-item scale was used to establish participants’ motives for participating in each
of the nine different leisure activities. Participants rated the extent to which each of the
30 statements accurately described why they participated in each of the nine leisure
activities on an 11-point scale (0 = Not at all and 10 = Completely). Ratings were given
for one activity at a time: for example, participants first rated the extent to which the 30
statements applied to why they played computer games, then to why they read books,
and so on.
The scale was divided into six subscales based on the factors identified in Study 1,
namely (1) positive mood management (e.g., ‘to set the “right” mood’); (2) diversion
(e.g., ‘to take my mind off things’); (3) negative mood management (e.g., ‘to make me
feel better’); (4) interpersonal relationships (e.g., ‘to have something to talk about with
others’); (5) personal identity (e.g., ‘to express my identity’); (6) surveillance (e.g., ‘to
keep up with current events’). Overall scores for each subscale were calculated as the
sum of the rating assigned to the items. For each of the nine activities, the 30 statements
were presented in a random order. Moreover, the sequence in which the nine activities
were presented was also randomized between participants into one of three different
versions of the questionnaire.

Results and discussion

To establish the importance of music relative to the other leisure interests investigated,
three within-subjects ANOVA’s were used to compare the everyday importance ascribed
to, the time, and money normally spent pursuing each of the nine different leisure
activities. Table 3 provides a summary of these analyses. Bonferroni pairwise comparisons
were then used to compare how important music was in relation to the eight other
activities.2
Table 3 shows that when asked to rate the importance of different leisure activities
in their everyday life, ratings showed that participants regarded listening to music as
the most important of the nine activities investigated (e.g., TV, radio, computer games).
Participants reported spending significantly more time listening to music (3.82 h per
day) than any of the other eight activities. Moreover, second only to pursuing their
favourite hobby/pastime, participants reported spending significantly more money each
month listening to music than other activity (although the non-significant difference
between music and reading books was a second exception to this). Together, these
findings support the idea that music is of particular importance to adolescents, above
other everyday leisure pursuits.
To investigate why listening to music is so important to people relative to other
leisure activities, participants were asked to rate how accurately 30 reasons described
why they participated in each of the nine leisure activities investigated. Accordingly,

2 Contact author for details of post hoc Bonferroni pairwise comparisons between music and other leisure activities.
Table 3. Summary of scores for each activity
Music uses and gratifications
115
116 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

several within-subject ANOVAs were carried-out to test whether participants’ reasons

for listening to music on each of the six factors (previously identified in Study 1) differed
significantly from those of the other eight activities investigated. Significant differences
between the nine activities were found on each of the six factors; a summary of these
findings can be seen in Table 4. Bonferroni pairwise comparisons were then carried out
to compare how participants’ reasons for listening to music differed to those of the other
eight activities overall scores on each of the six factors.3
Scores on both the ‘positive mood management’ and ‘negative mood management’
factors indicated that more than the other eight activities participants listened to music
to manage their mood. This suggests that of the leisure activities investigated, listening to
music was the foremost way by which individuals regulate their moods; where music is
used both to create and optimize positive moods, as well as to alleviate negative feelings.
Similarly, on the basis of interview data, Saarikallio and Erkkilä (2007) concluded that for
a group of Finnish adolescents ‘music proved to be a versatile means for mood regulation’
(p. 105). The present findings suggest that individuals might use music to strategically
influence their moods, which may not be possible to the same extent with other leisure
activities.
Scores on the ‘personal identity’ factor showed that participants used music and their
favourite hobby/pastime to construct and express their identity to a significantly greater
extent than any of the seven other activities investigated. One possible explanation for
this is that both activities may offer people with a greater scope for individual choice
than any of the other activities. Because of this freedom, people might more readily
ascribe personal significance to the music they choose to listen to, or the hobby they
choose to pursue. This contrasts with watching TV, for example, where though able to
select the channel, individuals are ultimately less able to control what they watch. Or
alternatively, in some cases listening to music could be a participant’s favourite hobby,
which might explain why scores on the ‘personal identity’ factor were not significantly
different.
Scores on the ‘diversion’ factor showed that participants used music and TV as a
distraction significantly more than any of the seven other activities investigated. The
high ‘diversion’ scores found for many of the activities suggest that the primary purpose
of any leisure activity is (to varying extents) to occupy us in an enjoyable way to
relieve boredom or pass the time. Listening to music and watching TV might not therefore
be uniquely motivated by the need for a distraction, but rather they are both simply better
at distracting us than other leisure activities.
Scores on the ‘interpersonal relationships’ factor showed that participants used TV,
films, newspapers, and magazines to manage personal relationships significantly more
than they used music. Non-significant differences were found between ‘interpersonal
relationships’ scores for music, sport, radio, and hobbies, whereas listening to music
scored significantly higher on this factor than reading books and playing computer games.
This suggests that when compared to other leisure activities, people might simply regard
watching TV and films as providing a better opportunity for social interaction, and to
spend time with family and friends. Whereas, low scores for reading books and playing
computer games are understandable given that both activities are normally individual
pursuits, and therefore serve to isolate people rather than promote social interaction.
Another reason for these finding might also be the way television programmes, films,

3 See note 2.
Table 4. Summary of mean scores for each activity
Music uses and gratifications
117
118 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

and newspapers/magazines are customarily scheduled for broadcast or publication.

This scheduling makes the collective consumption of these media possible, which
might present individuals with much greater possibility of shared experiences. This
is not normally the case for music, where individuals are typically responsible for the
music they listen to; music as a result is perhaps less likely (compared to TV, films,
newspapers/magazines) to be the subject of day-to-day conversation that often maintain
social relationships.
Scores on the ‘surveillance’ factor showed that participants used newspa-
pers/magazines, books, and TV to learn about the others and the world around them
significantly more than other activities. This is perhaps most easily understood given that
these particular elements of the mass media are, for the most part, designed specifically
for the purposes of communicating current news and information. Comparison of
‘surveillance’ scores also suggested that listening to music is motivated significantly
less by the need for surveillance, relative to participation in other activities. This is
unsurprising because, although inadvertently informative, music might not function
effectively as a means to learn about things. This idea is consistent with the findings of
Study 1, which showed that ‘surveillance’ was the least important of the six reasons why
people listen to music.
Using the six-factor model of music gratifications identified in Study 1, it was evident
that listening to music served to fulfil a unique combination of uses and gratifications,
which might only otherwise be fulfilled by a number of different leisure activities. With
the exception of ‘interpersonal relationships’ and ‘surveillance’, means scores on each
of the other four factors suggest that music is, for the most part, rated as better than the
other leisure activities at serving an individual’s different needs. This apparent versatility
might well explain why music is so important to adolescents. Uses and gratifications
research assumes that different media and leisure activities compete with each other
to satisfy peoples’ needs. In view of this assumption, music might simply be the most
effective means by which individuals can satisfy their different needs.
One limitation the study experienced was the potential overlap between the leisure
activities investigated. Specifically, the use of broad categories meant that the different
activities were not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, when watching TV,
people might actually be watching music videos, films, or sporting events. Nonetheless,
it would be impractical to distinguish between all the possible different subcategories
of each leisure activity (e.g., TV-music, TV-films, TV-sport).
A MANOVA was used to test whether male and female participants listen to music
for different reasons. Ratings of music’s everyday importance, measures of music
consumption, together with participants’ reasons for listening to music (i.e., scores
on the 30 individual statements and the six factors) were used as dependent variables. A
significant difference between male and female participants was found (F(33, 79) = 1.79,
p < .05). Mean scores showed that males were significantly more likely than females to
listen to music for the following five reasons: (1) ‘to pass the time’ (F(1, 111) = 5.17,
p < .05); (2) ‘to be entertained’ (F(1, 111) = 8.99, p < .01); (3) ‘to relax’ (F(1, 111) =
4.70, p < .05); (4) ‘to take my mind off things’ (F(1, 111) = 6.42, p < .05); and (5) ‘to
express my identity’ (F(1, 111) = 3.92, p < .05). The finding that males are more likely
than females to use music as a means to express their identity is consistent with past
research (North et al., 2000). However, the idea males are more likely to use music ‘to
pass the time’ contradicts that found in Study 1, which indicated the opposite. Although,
given the unequal number of males and females sampled, further studies may be needed
to establish whether these differences are reliable.
 Music uses and gratifications 119

STUDY 3: WHY DO WE LISTEN? A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS

Previous research (e.g., Gantz et al., 1978; North et al., 2000) has asked participants
to rate a number of different reasons to explain why they personally listen to music.
In doing so, these studies may have overlooked the real reasons why people listen to
music, limiting each participant’s response to the list of reasons used.
In view of this criticism, the present study used an open-ended question format
where participants would be free to explain why they listen to music. This qualitative
research design would serve to highlight the reasons used by participants themselves to
explain why they listen to music. There is a tradition within other disciplines, particularly
sociology, of using interviews to investigate why people listen to music (e.g., Bennett,
2000; DeNora, 2000; Laughey, 2006). The use of interviews has allowed researchers to
elicit rich, detailed information from participants, which has led to the development
of a number of important ideas regarding the functions of music. However, interviews
can be time consuming, subject to interviewer effects, and in some cases problematic
to analyse. For these reasons, interviews were not used to investigate why, in general,
people listen to music.
The present study simply asked participants to write down the reasons why they listen
to music, which should avoid many of the problems normally associated with interviews.
First, this self-report measure would only take a short time to complete, making it possible
to study a larger sample of participants. As a result, the findings of this study might be
more easily generalized to a wider population of people. Second, the present study avoids
the use of face-to-face interviews, in which a participant’s answers may be subject to a
social desirability bias, the use of leading questions, or interviewer effects (i.e., the idea
that an interviewer’s behaviour and characteristics can influence the answers given).
In the present study, participation was anonymous, therefore individuals should be
more willing to respond honestly, and less inclined to give socially desirable answers.
Third, when compared to interview transcripts, the findings of the present study should
be significantly easier to analyse. Specifically, because reasons are provided directly
by participants, rather than inferred indirectly from interview transcripts, analysis of
participants’ responses should be less ambiguous. Accordingly, the present investigation
should identify those reasons used consciously by individuals to account for why they
personally listen to music.

Method
Participants
A total of 189 psychology undergraduates (148 females, 41 males) participated in the
study voluntarily. Participants’ mean age was 18.89 years (SD = 3.10).

Design and procedure

Participants completed an open-ended questionnaire to establish participants’ reasons
for listening to music. Participants were first asked to indicate their sex and age.
Following this, participants were then asked to write as many reasons as possible
to explain why they listen to music. Participants were given 4 min to complete the
questionnaire.
120 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

Results and discussion

Thematic analysis (see Braun & Clarke, 2006, for an overview) was used to identify
any patterns or themes present in the reasons given by participants to explain why
they listen to music. Taking an inductive approach, the analysis was carried out with
no prior assumptions about why people listen to music, unconcerned with testing any
previous ideas about music. Themes were identified through the repeated examination
of participants’ transcripts, crosschecking for common patterns between participants to
explain why they listen to music. From this analysis, seven main themes were found to
emerge from the reasons given by participants to explain why they listen to music.

Mood management
The most prominent theme throughout participants’ responses was the use of music as
a means to express emotion and manage their mood (95.77% of participants) In most
cases, listening to music seemed to be a way for individuals to strategically create and
enhance a particular mood or emotion. Participants explained how they listened to
music to create, change, shift, and set different moods to suit both their personal needs
and social demands.

To put me in the mood I want to be in

To get me into a certain mood/feel a certain way
To put me in a particular mood/get me out of a particular mood
To put me in the mood for something

For most participants, listening to music was used as a deliberate attempt to manage
their level of arousal. Music was frequently described as a way to help participants
‘to relax’, ‘to chill out’, ‘calm down’, as well as a means ‘to motivate’, and increase
levels of arousal and energy. Given this, it is understandable that participants reported
using music to regulate their level of arousal throughout the day, and according to the
particular demands of different activities (e.g., exercise).

Gives me energy
Helps me to go to sleep
To wake me up in the mornings
I listen to music to motivate myself whilst working/exercising

Listening to music also appeared to represent a way for participants to create a positive
mood. A large proportion of participants reported listening to music because it ‘makes
me happy’, ‘to cheer me up’, ‘to make me feel better’.

Put me in a good mood

Makes me feel better when feeling low
It makes things seem better
Can bring you out of a bad mood

The use of music to influence how people experience their emotions was evident in
participants’ reasons for listening to music. Instead of using music to create a particular
 Music uses and gratifications 121

state, participants reported listening to music to enhance or optimize their emotional

experiences.

To heighten emotions
Makes the current mood I’m in exaggerated
It enhances the mood I am in or the emotions I am feeling

For some, listening to music provided participants with an opportunity for an emotional
release or ‘catharsis’. This suggests that participants might listen to music as a means to
cope with and alleviate negative feelings; although this cathartic function of music was,
for most participants, limited to relieving stress.

To make me cry
To release aggression
Helps release emotions if feeling down
Sad songs let me allow my feelings out when I’m hurt and angry

Participants also used music as a way to understand and express emotions that might
otherwise be confusing, and difficult to articulate. In particular, participants often
reported listening to music that was felt to match their emotions at the time.

I use it as a way of expressing the mood I’m in

Better express how I feel about certain things
It says what you otherwise can’t find the words to say

Music as background noise

The second main theme that emerged from the reasons given by participants was the
use of music as ‘background noise’ (75.66% of participants). This finding suggested that
in a number of cases listening to music was not the primary focus of participants, but
rather a secondary activity used to accompany another task.

Background to make other activities more enjoyable

So there’s some kind of noise in the background
For background listening when doing other things such as cooking

For most participants, the use of music as a source of ‘background noise’ was motivated
primarily by the need to avoid uncomfortable silences. Participants frequently reported
that they ‘hate silence’ and listened to music simply because ‘it fills the silence’.

I don’t like being in complete silence

I like having noise in the background – I don’t like it being too quiet!
It fills in the silence when I’m busy doing something

In social situations, participants report listening to music for similar reasons. Participants
reported using music to provide background noise when with other people in order ‘to
avoid awkward silences’ and ‘to create an atmosphere’.
122 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

Background sound to avoid awkward silences

Don’t like it when it’s quiet, provides a better atmosphere
As background noise when friends are over, it’s nicer to have music in the background than
silence

In some cases, participants reported using music as a way to alleviate feelings of lone-
liness. When alone, listening to music presumably offers individuals with background
noise that might serve as company, avoiding periods of silence that may remind them
they are alone.
To accompany me while I’m alone
Helps me to feel safe when I am in the house on my own
It keeps you company if you’re on your own

A large number of participants reported listening to music in the background when

working or studying. Participants frequently reported listening to music because it ‘helps
me to concentrate’.
To act as background music as I cannot study or work in silence
I can work better with music than silence
Background music stops my mind from wandering when I need to focus on work

Musical participation
The third main theme found was the idea that participants listened to music in order
to participate in musical behaviours (60.32% of participants). For example, participants
reported listening to music ‘to sing along to’, ‘to dance to’, and in few cases to help them
write songs, and to practice playing an instrument.

To reflect on the past

The fourth main theme discovered was the use of music to bring to mind and reflect upon
particular memories (34.92% of participants). Participants described listening to music to
‘bring back memories’, to ‘trigger certain memories’, to remind them of a place, person,
time, or event, or ‘because it can remind me of good times’. These findings suggest that
when feeling nostalgic and sentimental, participants may listen to music to reflect on
past experiences, relive memories from childhood, or remind of them happy times and
of loved ones.
To remind me of past happy times!

Because it reminds me of my friends and family

Sometimes I listen to music just because it reminds me of someone important to me or it
reminds me of a particular time of my life

Music as an enjoyable experience

The fifth theme was the idea that participants listened to music for no other reason but
to enjoy themselves (57.14% of participants). Participants reported listening to music
 Music uses and gratifications 123

simply ‘because I enjoy it’, ‘because it is fun’, ‘to entertain myself’, or ‘because I love
it’. Most of the time, participants were unable to state why they enjoyed music; but in
some cases specific musical elements (e.g., lyrics, melody, beats, etc.) were identified as
an explanation of why they listened to music.

Social interaction
The sixth theme discovered was the idea that listening to music was ‘a social activity’,
which offered an opportunity for participants ‘to socialise with friends’ (e.g., dancing,
live music) (25.40% of participants). Participants also reported listening to music ‘to have
something to talk about with others, where shared musical experiences might serve as
a useful conversations topic. In this context, listening to music might be understood to
facilitate social interaction, helping individuals to form and maintain relationships with
others.
I listen to have fun with my friends

To have something to talk to friends about

Good talking point when you meet someone

Music as a distraction
The final theme to emerge was the use of music as a means to distract participants and
occupy them when bored (40.21% of participants). Participants often described listening
to music ‘to pass the time’, ‘to kill time’, ‘to distract me’, and ‘to relieve boredom’. In many
cases, participants explained listening to music simply because it ‘gives me something
to do’.
To keep me occupied

Take my mind off things

It gives me something to do when I’m bored

Conclusions
Thematic analysis of the reasons given by participants showed that, in general, there were
seven main reasons why participants listen to music. Participants reported listening to
music as a means to manage their mood, to provide ‘background noise’ to accompany
another activity, to participate in musical behaviours, to reflect on the past, to enjoy the
music, to encourage social interaction, and as a distraction. These themes correspond
closely with the factors identified in Study 1. Most significantly, by using an open-ended
qualitative design, the present investigation discovered reasons why people listen to
music that had previously been overlooked.
Participants reported listening to music to sing along and dance to, providing
participants with a means to participate in musical behaviours regardless of musical
talent or training. The present investigation also highlighted that participants listen to
music as a way to remember a particular person, time, place, or event, to reflect on the
past, or to remind them of happy times and loved ones. Though perhaps obvious reasons
for listening to music, both have rarely been explicitly stated as such and have not been
dealt with directly by previous investigations (e.g., Gantz et al., 1978; Roe, 1985; Tarrant
124 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

et al., 2000). This would not have been possible if participants were asked to simply rate
a limited number of reasons to explain why they personally listen to music.
The main limitation of the present findings is that are based on the assumption that
participants are ‘sufficiently self-aware’ of, and able to properly articulate the reasons
why they listen to music. The extent to which this assumption is appropriate is open
to debate. Individuals may not always know why they listen to music, and as a result
the reasons given by participants might simply be those that they have previously heard
others say, or well-known, clichéd explanations that do not necessarily correspond with
why they personally listen to music. The qualitative analysis of participants’ responses
may also have been subject to potential limitations. As with any qualitative study, the
possibility of an interpretative bias cannot be disregarded. In addition to this, the present
study provides only a descriptive account of why participants listen to music. This meant
that the present findings were unable to demonstrate how important each of the reasons
identified were to why participants listen to music, which would have been helpful.

STUDY 4: REASONS FOR LISTENING TO MUSIC: A

CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY
Another criticism of many of the previous investigations concerned with the uses and
gratifications of music (e.g., Gantz et al., 1978; North et al., 2000) is that they employed
adolescent samples, and as a result, their findings cannot necessarily be generalized
to other age groups. This tendency to focus exclusively on the uses and gratifications
of adolescents is perhaps understandable given the particular importance they ascribe
to music in their everyday lives (e.g., Fitzgerald et al., 1995; see Studies 1 and 2). In
addition to this, the idea that development might continue beyond adolescence has,
broadly speaking, been underplayed by psychological research given the long held
assumption that an individual’s development is largely completed by this time (e.g.,
Freud, 1962; Piaget, 1974). These factors may have led previous researchers to overlook
the possibility that people of different ages might listen to music for different reasons,
the present investigation aimed to address this.
The idea that an individual’s development might continue throughout adulthood
was first popularized by Erikson (1980). He believed that over the course of their life-
span, an individual goes through eight stages, each presenting them with a particular
psychosocial crisis. The way in which each crisis is dealt with and resolved was thought
to influence how an individual’s personality develops. Levinson’s (1986) model of adult
development also suggested that adult life is structured into distinct periods or ‘eras’ (i.e.,
pre-, early, middle, and late adulthood). This model claimed that individuals undergo a
number of transitional periods during which their priorities, their relationships with
others, and their social roles were all likely to change. Gould’s (1978) ideas regarding
the development of adult consciousness again illustrate how individuals may continue
to develop throughout adulthood, where false assumptions about oneself and the world
are confronted, and over time gradually abandoned as one ‘grows up’. Based on this
notion that an individual’s goals, priorities, and challenges are likely to differ at different
points of their life-span, the present investigation studied whether people of different
ages listen to music for different reasons.
Several previous investigations have found evidence of a developmental shift in how
people relate to music. For example, Holbrook and Schindler (1989) and North and
Hargreaves (1995, 2002) found that people of all ages were most likely to prefer music
 Music uses and gratifications 125

listened to during late adolescence or early adulthood, such that musical tastes tend
to reflect those songs, artists, and genres most prevalent at that period of their life.
LeBlanc, Sims, Siivola, and Obert’s (1993) cross-sectional study found that an individual’s
tolerance for different musical styles (or ‘open-earedness’) fluctuated between different
age groups. Musical tolerance was highest among young children, declining significantly
during adolescence, lower among adolescents, higher again in adults, and then lower
again among older participants. If aesthetic responses to music vary among different age
cohorts, it is not unreasonable to then expect that people of different ages might also
listen to music for different reasons.
Previous research has investigated why non-adolescent samples listen to music,
although this has typically focused on a specific age group, with no direct comparison
between people of different ages. For example, Hays and Minichiello (2005) asked a
sample of elderly people (i.e., aged 60 years + ) why they listened to music. However,
because no comparisons were made with other age groups, this study was unable to offer
any indication whether elderly people listen to music for the same reasons as younger
people, or if they significantly differ in some way.
The present study asked participants from six different age groups to rate the reasons
why they listen to music. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study was the first
to investigate whether people of different ages listen to music for different reasons; and
because of this there were no grounds to predict specifically where these age differences
might lie. However, if we accept the assumptions that people at different points of their
life are likely to face different challenges, and individuals use music to serve their needs,
it is then reasonable to expect that different age groups might have different reasons for
listening to music.

Method
Participants
Seven hundred volunteers were recruited from three sixth form colleges, three university
campus libraries, and from members of the general public. Participants were divided into
six age groups, namely 173 of 16- to 18-year-olds (88 males, 85 females); 197 of 19- to
24-year-olds (104 males, 93 females); 94 of 25- to 29-year-olds (50 males, 44 females);
78 of 30- to 39-year-olds (50 males, 28 females); 75 of 40- to 49-year-olds (48 males, 27
females); 83 of above 50-year-olds (39 males, 44 females).

Design and procedure

Participants completed a questionnaire that first asked them to rate how important
music was in their everyday life. Ratings were given on an 11-point scale (0 = Not at
all important and 10 = Extremely important). In addition to this, participants were
also asked to report the hours per day they spent listening to music and the amount of
money (UK £ per month) they normally spent on music.
A 48-item scale was then used to ask why participants listen to music (i.e., based on
the findings of Study 3, 18 items were added to the 30 item scale used in Studies 1 and
2). Participants were instructed to rate the extent to which each statement described
why they listened to music. Ratings were given on an 11-point scale (0 = Not at all
and 10 = Completely). The 48 statements were presented to all participants in the same
randomized order.
126 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

Results and discussion

A 2 × 6 MANOVA was used to test whether (1) participant’s ratings of how important
music was in their everyday life; (2) the hours per day they spent listening to music;
and (3) the amount of money (UK £/month) they spent on music differed significantly
according to a participant’s sex and age group. Multivariate analysis showed found
significant differences between age groups (F(15, 2064) = 6.36, p < .001), and between
male and female participants (F(3, 686) = 3.17, p < .05). No significant interactions
were found between sex and age. Significant main effects for participants’ age were
found on the everyday importance of music (F(5, 688) = 11.46; p < .01), the time
spent listening to music (F(5, 688) = 7.44; p < .01), and the amount of money spent
listening to music (F(5, 688) = 6.19; p < .01).4 The only significant main effect for
sex was found on the amount of money participants report spending listening to music
(F(1, 688) = 7.00; p < .01). Post hoc analysis showed that men aged 25–29, and those
aged 50 and over spent significantly more money listening to music than women of
the same age. In each case, no significant interaction was found between age and
sex.
When asked to rate how important music is in their everyday life, mean ratings
suggested that music was particularly important for adolescents and young adults, but
was significantly less important for participants aged over 30.5 This decline in music’s
everyday importance is most likely explained by differences in participants’ priorities and
growing responsibilities (e.g., full-time work, children, financial commitments), rather
than by a direct effect of their age. For example, music might be expected to play a
significantly more important part in the life of a 30-year-old man who is single, with
no children, and works only part-time, than for a married man of the same age, who
works full-time and has a family to support. Future research should investigate this idea,
examining the relative influence of an individual’s chronological age, subjective age (i.e.,
how old do you feel?), and the number of social roles and responsibilities they have on
how important music is to them.
Participants aged between 16 and 29 reported spending significantly more time
listening to music than those aged over 30.5 One reason for this might be that people
aged 30 years and over simply have less spare time to listen to music or, because of
changing priorities they are less inclined to spend their spare time listening to music.
Young adults (i.e., 25–29 years old) also reported spending the most money each month
on music.5 Participants aged 50 years and over spent the least on music each month,
spending significantly less than all other age groups except for those aged between 16
and 18 years. Participants aged 25–29 were likely to have the highest disposable income
of all six of the age groups investigated, and may therefore have felt free to spend more
money on non-essential, leisure goods such as music. Interestingly, even though music
was found equally important to participants of both sexes, men aged between 25 and
29 years, and over 50 years reported spending more money on music than women of
a similar age. Future research is should investigate the possible reasons for this, and
explore why men are likely to spend more money on music than women of the same
age.

4 Contact author for details of Tukey HSD post hoc comparisons between the six different age groups.
5 Contact author for a summary of mean scores in each of the six age groups and line graphs to illustrate how these age
groups differ.
 Music uses and gratifications 127

A factor analysis was conducted on participants’ ratings of the 48 reasons why they
listened to music. Varimax rotation of the principal components showed that there were
eight different factors with eigenvalues greater than one, which together accounted for
60.96% of variance present in participants’ ratings. Factor loadings greater than 0.30 are
shown in Table 5.
These loadings suggest that Factor 1 might be interpreted as ‘personal identity’, where
music is used for identity development or to portray a social image to others. Factor 2
might be interpreted as ‘negative mood management’, where music is used to alleviate
negative feelings and to enhance mood. Factor 3 might be interpreted as ‘positive mood
management’, where music is used to entertain and create positive moods. Factor 4
might be interpreted as ‘reminiscing’, where individuals listen to music to reminisce,
reminding them of a particular place, person, or time. Factor 5 might be interpreted as
‘diversion’, where music is used as a distraction to relieve boredom, or to simply pass
the time. Factor 6 might be interpreted as ‘arousal’, where music is used to manage
an individual’s level of arousal. Factor 7 might be interpreted as ‘surveillance’, where
music is used as a means to keep-up with current events and social trends. Factor 8
might be interpreted as ‘social interaction’, where people listen to music to provide an
opportunity for interaction with others. This eight-factor model is broadly consistent
with the six factors identified in Study 1.
A 2 × 6 MANOVA compared participants’ scores on each of these eight factors to
test whether or not men and women within the different age groups listen to music for
significantly different reasons. Multivariate analysis showed found significant differences
between age groups (F(40, 3425) = 7.89, p < .001), and between male and female
participants (F(8, 681) = 18.06, p < .001). No significant interactions were found
between sex and age. Univariate analyses showed there were significant differences
between the age groups on scores on seven of the eight factors.6 Univariate analyses also
showed significant differences between male and female scores on the personal identity,
reminiscing, and arousal factors. Table 6 provides a summary of these findings.
Scores on the ‘personal identity’ factor indicated that participants in each successive
age group were less and less likely to listen to music as a means to define and express
their identity. Late adolescents (16–18 years old) were found most likely to listen for
this reason, significantly more than those aged over 30 years.5 One possible explanation
for this is that, as people grow into adulthood they are likely to encounter ever more
opportunities to define and express their identity in ways (e.g., as a parent, through an
occupation) other than the music they like to listen to. In addition to this, men aged
between 19 and 29 years scored significantly higher on the ‘personal identity’ factor
than women of the same age. These finding suggested that whilst equally important
to identity development for adolescents, women are significantly less likely to listen to
music for this reason when adults. In contrast to this, young men appear to continue
listening to music to define and express their identity until they reach their thirties, after
which ‘personal identity’ scores exhibit a similar decline for both men and women.
Scores on both ‘negative’ and ‘positive mood management’ factors suggested that for
age groups older than adolescence and early adulthood, participants were increasingly
less likely to listen to music to regulate their emotions.5 Older participants were perhaps
more adept at managing their moods, and as a result were less reliant on music for
this reason. Indeed, research suggests that emotional intelligence (i.e., the ability to

6 See note 4.
Table 5. Factor analysis of participants’ reasons for listening to music
128
Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North
 Music uses and gratifications 129

Table 5. (Continued)
130 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

Table 6. Summary of 2 × 6 between-groups analyses

recognize, understand, and manage our emotions) might increase with age (Mayer,
Caruso, & Salovey, 2000). Future research should explore this idea, investigating whether
an individual’s emotional intelligence mediates the extent to which they use music to
regulate their moods.
Scores on the ‘reminiscing’ factor showed that participants aged 19–24 were
significantly more likely than those over 30 to use music to reminisce about the past.5
This finding was initially counter-intuitive, older people (especially those over 50) were
expected most likely to listen for this reason (if only because they had experienced
more of life to reminisce over). However, research has shown that the elderly might
not reminisce any more than younger people (e.g., Merriam & Cross, 1982; Webster,
1994, 1995), and if so, the present finding is less surprising. There is, however, evidence
to suggest that people of different ages reminisce for different reasons (Webster, 1995;
Webster & McCall, 1999). The age differences observed in participants’ scores might
therefore indicate that listening to music serves reminiscence functions more suited to
the needs of young adults than older people. Scores on the reminiscing factor also suggest
that women aged 16–18 and 40–49 years were more likely to use music to reminisce
about the past than men of the same age. Previous studies have also found that men
and women reminisce for different reasons (Webster, 1995; Webster & McCall, 1999).
For women, reminiscing tends to serve a social function, to encourage conversation
and maintain intimacy with others. This may explain why women score higher on the
reminiscing factor, perhaps using music more readily to remind themselves and others
of shared experiences (e.g., ‘this song reminds me of time we went on holiday together’)
that may facilitate social interaction.
Scores on the ‘diversion’ factor indicated that adolescents were the most likely group
to use music as a distraction, whereas participants in each of the other five age groups
were, with increasing age, less likely to listen for this reason.5 One possible explanation
for this might be greater access to, and use of portable music players (e.g., the iPod)
among young people, who are therefore better able to draw on music as a means to
distract them, or simply pass the time. Future research should investigate how (e.g.,
radio, Internet, mp3 player), when, and where (e.g., at home, or a nightclub) people
of different of ages listen to music, as this is likely to significantly influence the reasons
why people listen.
Scores on the ‘arousal’ factor suggested that participants aged 30 years and over were
significantly less likely than younger people to listen to music as a mean of managing
their level of arousal.5 One reason for this might be that people aged over 30 were able
 Music uses and gratifications 131

to find other means or simply felt less need to manage their arousal level. Scores on the
arousal factor also indicated that women of all ages were significantly more likely than
men to listen to music as a means of managing their arousal. Research has shown that
when compared to men, women display a heightened physiological reaction to arousing
music (Nater, Abbruzzese, Krebs, & Ehlert, 2006). This greater sensitivity to the arousing
effects of music might explain why women are more likely than men to listen to music
to manage their arousal.
Comparison of ‘surveillance’ scores showed there were no significant differences
between participants in all six age groups in their use of music as a means to keep-up
with current events and social trends. Study 1 showed that ‘surveillance’ was the least
important reason why people listen to music; with this in mind the present findings may
reflect the fact that people do not actually use music to learn about others and the world
around us.
Scores on the ‘social interaction’ factor showed that young adults (16–29 years olds)
were significantly more likely than those aged 50 years and over to listen to music as a
means to spend time with family and friends.5 This finding suggests that for older people,
listening to music might be less of a social activity to be shared with others, and more
of a personal experience, to be enjoyed alone. This finding perhaps reflects the greater
social isolation and loneliness experienced in late adulthood (e.g., Rokach, 2000).
The main limitation of the present study is the cross-sectional design used. Because
of this, the current findings cannot be assumed to provide evidence of developmental
changes; rather, the present results instead provide evidence of differences between
people of different age cohorts. To address this, longitudinal studies are needed
to investigate whether the differences observed here represent true developmental
changes, or are simply the result of generational differences between age cohorts. The
present findings indicate that an individual’s reasons for listening to music are likely
to change most significantly when they reach their thirties. With this in mind, future
longitudinal studies might investigate whether an individual’s reasons for listening differ
significantly as they undergo this transition from early adulthood (i.e., 19–29 years) into
mid-adulthood (i.e., 30–50 years).
Future replications of this study should aim to investigate a broader range of age
groups, taking into account the reasons why children (8–12 years), young adolescents
(13–15 years), and those in late adulthood (50–59 years/60 years and over) listen to
music. Future research should also investigate how individual differences, other than age,
influence why people listen to music (e.g., ethnicity, personality). In the meantime, the
present findings indicate that music serves a number of different uses and gratifications,
and that the nature of these differs between age groups.

SUMMARY AND GENERAL DISCUSSION

The four studies reported here were conducted according to the assumptions of the
‘uses and gratifications approach’ (Katz et al., 1974), and all provide further insight as to
why music is so important to people.
Study 1 investigated peoples’ reasons for listening to music, and showed that there
were six main reasons why participants listen to music. Comparison of mean ratings
given to each of the six factors indicated that participants listen to music primarily as
a means to manage/regulate their moods, as well as a diversion to distract them from
everyday boredom, or simply pass the time. In contrast, the social functions of music
132 Adam J. Lonsdale and Adrian C. North

(i.e., ‘interpersonal relationships’ and ‘personal identity’) were of secondary importance

to this, and the use of music as means to learn about others and the world around us
(i.e., ‘surveillance’) was found to be the least important of the six reasons why people
listen to music.
Study 2 investigated whether listening to music was more or less important to
participants than other leisure activities. Together, ratings of everyday importance and
the reported time and money spent listening to music showed that music is of particular
importance to adolescents, relative to the other leisure activities investigated. To explain
why music was so important to participants, Study 2 also investigated whether the
reasons people listen to music were significantly different to those of eight other leisure
activities. Mean scores on each of the six factors indicated that listening to music is
uniquely capable of satisfying a number of different needs. With the exception of both
the ‘interpersonal relationships’ and ‘surveillance’ factors, listening to music was found
to be better than the other leisure activities at serving an individual’s different needs.
This versatility may explain why music is so important to people, whereby listening to
music might simply be the most effective means for individuals to satisfy their different
needs.
In Study 3, an open-ended qualitative research design was used to investigate peoples’
reasons for listening to music. Thematic analysis showed that, in general, there were
seven main reasons why participants listen to music. Participants reported listening to
music as a means to manage their mood, to provide ‘background noise’ to accompany
another activity, to participate in musical behaviours, to reflect on the past, to enjoy the
music, to encourage social interaction, and as a distraction. These themes correspond
closely with the factors identified in Study 1. Most significantly, by using an open-ended
qualitative design, Study 3 discovered reasons why people listen to music that had been
overlooked by previous research.
Study 4 investigated whether people of different ages listen to music for different
reasons. Significant differences were found between the six age groups on seven of the
eight main reasons for listening to music. Using a cross-sectional design, these findings
cannot be assumed to represent true developmental changes, and might simply reflect
generational differences between age cohorts. This limitation served to highlight the
need for longitudinal studies to investigate if peoples’ reasons for listening to music
differ significantly as they grow older.
The findings of all four studies must, however, be regarded with some caution given
that the uses and gratifications approach is based on the assumption that individuals are
‘sufficiently self-aware’ of the reasons why they take part in particular activities. This may
not necessary be entirely accurate, or true. However, given problems of falsification, it
would be pointless for any empirical study to investigate the possibility that people listen
to music to gratify their unconscious needs or desires of which they are unaware.
The main limitation of the research reported here is that it assumes that people listen
to music for the same reasons, regardless of individual differences, the sociocultural
context, and the music itself. Recent research has, for example, shown that individual
differences in personality and intelligence might influence why people listen to music
(Chamorro-Premuzic & Furnham, 2007). It is also reasonable to suspect that differences
in listening strategies (Hargreaves & Colman, 1981) might lead those with higher levels
of musical training to listen music for different reasons compared to novices. North,
Hargreaves, and Hargreaves (2004) found that the reasons why participants listened to
music differed significantly according to who they were with, the social setting, and
the time of day. There is also evidence to suggest that people listen to different music
 Music uses and gratifications 133

genres for different reasons (North et al., 2000). In the light of this, the reasons why
an individual listens to music can be assumed likely to vary for a number of different
factors; future research should therefore aim to reflect this, providing an increasingly
comprehensive and precise account of how people use music to satisfy their individual
needs.

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Received 13 January 2010; revised version received 8 April 2010