Psychology 2630 Psychology of Music (Winter 2025)

The course introduces fundamental and exciting developments in the growing field of the psychology of music. Taking a cognitive psychological approach, topics in the course include memory for popular music, the distinctive sounds of musical instruments, music and the brain, rhythmic behaviour in humans and animals, absolute pitch, music and expectancy, the unheard melodies of film music, music and emotion, musical performance, musical creativity, musical intelligence, musical development, cross-cultural perspectives and world music, music appreciation and personality, music and well-being, and the historical context. Students will explore complexities underlying research findings and will aim to relate this understanding to music in their lives as well as to other areas in psychology.