speech outline

Running Head: USE MUSIC TO IMPROVE YOUR LIFE 1

Use Music to Improve your Life

FirstName LastName

Communications 101, MiraCosta College

USE MUSIC TO IMPROVE YOUR LIFE

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Introduction

I. The average American teenager will listen to 10,500 hours of music between the 7th

and 12th grades, which is almost equivalent to the number of hours spent in the

classroom from kindergarten through high school. (Brown, 2006, p. 51)

II. Listening to music is integral to my life every day because it lifts me up when I’m

sad, it helps me deal with stress, and it calms me when I’m upset or angry.

III. Music impacts everyone’s lives every day either mentally, physically or behaviorally,

whether they are aware of it or not, that is a fact.

Let’s start with looking at how music affects us mentally.

Body

I. Music acts as a powerful mental force for people to create, change, shift and set

different moods to suit their personal needs.

A. Students can use music to enhance their learning experience and be better

prepared.

1. When you start to study you should start with 10 minutes of good, energetic

dancing to pop music to get your body oxygenized.

2. After that, when you sit to study, listen to slow, baroque music such as Bach,

with fewer than 60 beats per minute, for better focus. (Gard, 1997)

a. The best music for study has no words; words distract you by

encouraging your brain to sort them out and make sense of them.

b. A recent study at the University of California Irvine indicates that

listening to the music of Mozart can raise a person’s IQ. (Gard, 1997)

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B. Research shows that listening to music is helpful in improving person’s mental

health and well-being.

1. Studies have found that in adolescents, music can help relieve tension,

alleviate feelings of loneliness, manage their moods, and relieve

boredom. (North, 2011, p. 108)

2. Listening to music can trigger certain memories of a person, place, or

event that cause nostalgic and sentimental feelings, reminding people

of happy times. (North, 2011, p. 122)

Music’s mental effects on our mood and memories are common knowledge to most of us,

because we experience it every day, but music can have an effect on a person physically, and

that’s what I’d like to explore further now.

II. Music was prescribed in the treatment of illness by ancient Egyptians and Greeks as

far back as the Renaissance and Baroque periods, and today, music continues to be

used to improve physical wellness.

A. Hospitals are finding music therapy can be an effective addition to patient care

for critically ill patients.

1. Studies have been done in neo-natal units showing that in premature

infants, music decreases heart rate, salivary cortisol and distress behaviors

and increases oxygen saturation and weight gain. (Kemper, 2004, p. 50)

a. Harp music is especially effective in reducing stress

b. Playing music also decreased crying and improved infants sleep and

cognitive development. (Kemper, 2004, p. 53)

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2. Research has shown that music can provide an effective method of

reducing stress levels in patients in the Intensive Care Unit that are

receiving mechanical ventilation, or breathing through the use of a tube

and machine.

a. Having to be on a ventilator to breathe is one of the most stressful

experiences an ICU patient can have, and by listening to a single 30-

minute session of music, patients appeared to show a decrease in heart

rate, blood pressure and an increase in comfortable resting behaviors.

(On Kei Angela Lee, 2005, p. 609)

b. The best type of music suitable for this music intervention tends to

have no accented beats, no percussion, a slow tempo and a smooth

melody. (On Kei Angela Lee, 2005, p. 611)

B. Music is also an effective motivator in increasing physical activity.

1. Researchers did a study of fourth and fifth grade students during a

physical education endurance test and found that the scores increased for

both males and females when administered with music. (Prusak, 2015, p.

238)

a. The study found that fast-tempo music was preferred, and when

students picked fast-tempo music, their workload intensity also

increased.

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b. The study indicated that when a teacher is planning a lesson they

should not only consider including music, but choosing music with a

fast tempo.

2. Everyone has gone to a gym and seen 99% of the people working out

have headphones on, proving that music can motivate you to move, and

this result is people work out harder when they are listening to their

music.

So we know that music motivates our mind, it helps our physical well-being, and it also does one

more thing I’d like to explore, and that is how music can influence our behavior.

III. According to a Spin article, the average American listens to four hours and five

minutes of audio each day, so it’s only natural to assume that what we listen to is

having an impact on our behavior.

A. In a study of adolescents today, their attitudes about school, material success,

appreciation of themselves and others, seems to be shaped to a large extent by the

music the listen to. (Brown, 2006, p. 49)

1. Today music is almost always with young people on their phones, ipods and

ipads and it has become a time-filler, a distraction, an anti-boredom device.

2. Music is both a motivator and a stress-reducer for most people.

B. Music can also guide people’s behavior through catchy advertising tunes

motivating people to buy things.

1. Music helps people deal with grief by hearing music that helps them

remember their loved ones

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2. Music is also used as background music in malls and stores to encourage more

shopping, like at Christmas time.

In conclusion, music is a part of everyday life, whether you’re aware of it or not, and its effects

are a positive influence on our lives.

Conclusion

I. Music can change our moods

A. It lift us up when we’re feeling down, motivate us to try harder and push

ourselves both mentally and physically, and to guide our behavior and mold the

people we become.

B. In addition to this, listening to music has been proven to be an effective treatment

of illnesses, especially in premature infants and patients in Intensive Care Units.

II. Clincher: As I mentioned, a recent study at UC Irvine indicated that listening to the

music of Mozart can raise a person’s IQ by speaking directly to the parts of the brain

that enhance learning, and as students, I suggest we all download some Mozart on our

phones and Ipods before finals!

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References

Brown, V. (2006). Guiding the Influence of Hip-Hop Music on Middle School Students

'Feelings, Thinking, Behavior. The Negro Educational Review, 49-68.

Gard, C. (1997). Music N' Moods. Current Health 2, 24.

Kemper, K. J. (2004). Attitudes and Expectations About Music Therapy for Premature Infants

Among Staff in NeoNatal Intesive Care Unit. Alternative Therapies in Health &

Medicine, 50-53.

North, A. J. (2011). Why do we listen to music? A uses and gratifications analysis. British

Journal of Psychology, 108-123.

On Kei Angela Lee, L. C. (2005). Music and its effect on the physiological responses and

anxiety levels of patients receiving mechanical ventilation. Journal of Clinical Nursing,

609-620.

Prusak, D. B. (2015). Effects of Music on Physical Activity Rates of Elementary Physical

Education Students. Physical Educator, 236-244.