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Running Head: EFFECT OF DISTRACTORS

The Effect of Distractors on the Accuracy and Completion of Logic Problems

Sara K. Norris

Meredith College

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EFFECT OF DISTRACTORS

Abstract

The effect of distractors on the completion and accuracy of logic problems was examined.

Participants were female undergraduate students at Meredith College (N = 12). Participants were

randomly and equally divided into 3 groups. Each group received a packet with 3 pages of logic

problems. The packets were not in the same order, but each page corresponded with a condition.

The three conditions were quiet, calming (classical music) and aversive (a song considered

distracting and with lyrics). Participants were given 2 minutes to complete the logic problems in

each condition. The experiment was counterbalanced in that participants received conditions in

different orders. The mean score for the quiet condition (29.17 SD = 15.64) was less than the

mean score for the calming condition (38.25 SD = 18.31) and the disruptive condition (38.42 SD

= 21.67) but there was no significant difference between the conditions F (2,22) = 1.52, p>.05.

Keywords: distractors, logic problems, music

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Effect of Distractors on The Accuracy and Completion of Logic Problems

In a study by Shih, Huang, and Chiang (2012) the effect of background music on

attention performance was measured. The aim of the study was to determine if there was a

difference in attention test performance for two different types of music. Music types included

music with lyrics and music without lyrics. Participants in this study were students ages 20-24

years old, with 56 males and 46 females (N = 102). There were two different groups in this

study; Group 1 listened to music with lyrics while Group 2 listened to music without lyrics.

Participants took a pre-test to measure baseline performance three weeks before the experiment.

The pre-test consisted of the attention test in an environment without music. Participants were

randomly assigned to one of the two groups and took the attention test in the condition

corresponding with their group. Researchers hypothesized that participants who took the test

while listening to music with lyrics would score lower than participants who took the test while

listening to music without lyrics. The results of the study conducted by Shih et. al (2012)

showed that there was no significant difference between music type on test scores. The mean

score of attention test performance was lower when tested while listening to music than the

baseline performance, but it was not found to be significant. Background music did not have an

effect on attention performance in the study done by Shih et. al (2012).

A study by Cockerton, Moore and Norman (1997) examined the effects of background

music on test performance. The aim of the study was to determine if classical music had an

effect on test performance and arousal rates. Participants were psychology undergraduate

students (N = 30) aged 10-32 years old. The study was a repeated measure design with two

groups. The study was counterbalanced; Group 1 completed the test with music first and without

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music second while Group 2 completed the test without music first and with music second. The

music was meant to be relaxing; the music was created by a program that creates music generally

used for meditation. Arousal rates were measured by monitoring heart rate. Researchers

hypothesized that music would increase mean test scores and lower arousal rates. There was a

significant difference of mean scores between the two conditions. There was no significant

difference of arousal rate between conditions. Background music had a significant effect on test

performance in the study by Cockerton et. al (2012).

In a study conducted by Powell and Davidson (2001) the effect of background music on

task performance was examined. The aim of this study was to determine if easy-listening

background music increased on-task performance. Participants were fifth-grade science students

(N = 26). Participants were not split into different groups, differences in gender were examined

instead. Participants varied in ability level and socioeconomic level of families. Measurements

were taken every three minutes during each observation. At the end of each observation the

percentage of time-on-task was calculated for each gender and for the entire class. There were

15 observations taken without music to determine a baseline. The hypothesis for the study done

by Powell and Davidson (2001) was that students would be on-task a higher percentage when

listening to music. The results of the study by Powell and Davidson (2001) showed that there

was a significant difference between time-on-task with and without music. Time-on-task was

significantly higher when background music was present overall, and for males. There was not a

significant difference of time-on-task between conditions. Females were reported to be on task

99 percent of the time at baseline whereas males were on task 90 percent of the time at baseline.

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Background music had a significant effect on on-task-performance in the study conducted by

Powell and Davidson (2001).

A study conducted by Lilley, Oberle and Thompson (2014) examined the effect of music

on test scores and test anxiety. The aim of this study was to determine if grade consequences

and music had an effect on test scores and test anxiety during a math test. Participants were 80

undergraduate students (N = 80) aged 17-26. Heart rate and blood pressure was measured before

the experiment began to determine baseline anxiety. Half of the participants were told that the

math test was going to be difficult and may threaten the grade while the other half was told that

not to worry about their grade. During the math test half of the participants received obnoxious

music while the other half received calming music. Heart rate and blood pressure were measured

during the math test. There was a significant difference between conditions on test anxiety. The

average heart rate was higher for participants who were told to worry about the grade. The

average heart rate was also higher for participants who received the obnoxious music. There was

a significant difference of mean test scores between calming music and obnoxious music for

those who were told that the score was important; scores were significantly higher when

participants listened to calming music. In the study by Lilley et. al there was an effect of music

on test scores.

Research by Jones and Estell (2007) examined the effect of classical music on test

performance in high school students. Participants in this study were high school students (N =

86) ages 14-18. Parental consent was obtained for participants under 18. Participants were

randomly and equally divided into two groups. Group 1 listened to classical music then took a

spatial test while Group 2 sat in a silent room for seven minutes followed by the spatial test.

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Groups took the test at the same time and in the same room, participants were only separated

during music and silent exposure. Results of the study by Jones and Estell (2007) found that

classical music did have an effect on test performance. The mean score of answers correct was

significantly higher for Group 1 (classical) than for Group 2 (silent). There was an effect of

classical music on test performance in the study by Jones and Estell (2007).

The purpose of the present study was to determine if music type had an effect on the

performance of logic problems. The hypothesis of the present study was that participants would

have a lower mean questions correct in the disruptive condition than in the calming and quiet

condition and would have the highest mean questions correct in the calming music condition.

MethodParticipants

Participants (N = 12) were undergraduate woman studying psychology at Meredith

College. Participation was voluntary and anonymous and participants were treated in accordance

with the “Ethical Principles of Psychologist and Code of Conduct” (APA, 2002). Participants

received one-point extra credit.

Materials

The materials were a consent form (see Appendix A), instructions (see Appendix B),

three pages of logic problems from The think book: Visually Oriented Problem Solving Activities

(Brown, 1990) (see Appendix C), a debriefing form (see Appendix D), the song Narwhals

“Narwhals Swimming in the Ocean” (Picking, J., 2013) a Classical song “Adagio in G minor for

violin, strings and organ” (Albinoni, T.G. (2010), a timer, writing utensils, and a computer.

Procedure

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Participants (N = 12) were recruited, signed a consent form and divided equally into three

groups. The Groups were counterbalanced, participants received conditions in different orders.

Group 1 completed the logic task in the quiet condition first, followed by the calming music and

the disruptive music. Group 2 began the experiment with the calming music condition, followed

by the disruptive music and the silent condition. Group 3 started with the disruptive condition,

followed by the silent condition and the calming music condition. Each condition was conducted

in a room separate from that of the other conditions. Participants were given two minutes to

complete the logic problems in each condition and were not allowed to communicate with each

other. Participants were debriefed and released.

Results

The logic problems were scored by the amount correct out of the total amount of

problems on each page. The mean problems correct for the quiet condition was 29.17 (SD =

15.64), calming music condition was 38.25 (SD = 18.31) and the disruptive condition was 38.42

(SD = 21.67) (See Table 1 & Figure 1). There was not a significant difference of the mean

amount of problems correct for music type F (2,22) = 1.52, p>.05 (see Table 2).

Discussion

The hypothesis of the present study was that participants would have a lower mean

questions correct in the disruptive condition than in the calming and quiet condition and would

have the highest mean questions correct in the calming music condition. There was no

significant difference of the mean amount of problems correct for music types.

The study by Shih, Huang, and Chiang (2012) had similar findings. Research by Shih et.

al (2012) found that music with or without lyrics did not have a significant effect on attention

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test performance. In both studies music was used as a form of distraction. Both studies used a

quiet condition as a form of baseline, had a condition with music that contained lyrics, and had a

condition that had music without lyrics. The present study supported the findings of Shih et. al

(2012). There was no significant difference between any of the conditions. In the study by Shih

et. al (2012) a difference in mean scores was found between pre and post test but it was not

significant. Results from the present study showed that the scores in the quiet condition was

lower than scores in the conditions with music. Unlike the study by Shih et. al (2012) the present

study did not use a pre-test. The quiet condition was used as a control. This could have been a

limitation to the present study. The logic problems were complex; participants could have

benefitted from completing a task before the experiment to be better prepared for the logic tasks.

The study by Cockerton, Moore and Norman (1997) had contrasting results. Results of

this study showed that there was a significant effect of background music on test performance.

Participants had a higher test score when listening to music then when not listening to music.

There was not a significant difference of mean test scores between conditions in the present

study. Mean scores of the present study were lower in the quiet condition than in the conditions

with music, but was not significantly lower. This is similar to the findings of Cockerton et. al

(1997), participants scored lower in conditions without music in both studies but the present

study was not significant. Like the present study, the study completed by Cockerton et. al had a

small sample size; this could have contributed to the significance of the results. The present

study used two different types of music; classical (calming) and aversive, the study done by

Cockerton et. al (1977) only used calming music. Although there were similarities between the

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present study and the study done by Cockerton et. al (1977) the present study did not support the

findings of this study.

The study by Powell and Davidson (1986) had similar results to the study done by

Cockerton, Moore and Norman (1997) and marginally similar results to the present study. The

study by Powell and Davidson (1986) showed that there was a significant difference in time-on-

task when music was played. Time-on-task was greater overall and for male participants when

background music was played. There was not a significant difference in time-on-task between

conditions for female conditions. The present study was all female and no significant difference

between conditions was found. Gender could have an effect. Female participants in the study by

Powell and Davidson were found to be on-task during baseline 99 percent of the time, this

demonstrates that females generally focus more than males. The study by Powell and Davidson

was done with individuals younger than participants in the present study. Significance was

found in the study by Powell and Davison (1986). The study by Powell and Davidson provided

evidence of age effects. Although the study by Powell and Davidson (1986) and the present

study did not have the same results, the study by Powell and Davidson provided evidence that

confounding variables could have greatly effected the present study.

The study by Lilley, Oberle and Thompson (2014) showed that there was an effect of

music on test performance when participants were told that the score was important. Mean test

scores were higher for participants who listened to classical music and lower for students who

listened to obnoxious music when told that the grade mattered. Similar to the present study,

music type was not found to be significant under normal circumstances. In the present study the

participants were aware that this was for an experiment and that the score would not affect the

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opportunity for extra credit. When grades are not threatened individuals tend to have lower

anxiety and may not be affected by what type of music they are listening to. When participants

are told that the grade matters individuals may pay more attention to music types and be affected

by it. Participants in the present study may have not been as worried about the score and may

have not tried as hard due to the fact that the grade was not threatened. The study by Lilley et. al

(2014) provided evidence that this could have occurred in the present study.

The study by Jones and Estell (2007) found slightly similar results compared to the

present study. In the study by Jones and Estell (2007) there was a significant effect of music on

test performance. Participants who received classical music before the test scored significantly

higher than students who sat in silence. The present study found that when participants took the

test in silence the mean score was lower than when taken while listening to music. Like the

present study, the study by Jones and Estell (2007) showed that students scored lower when they

did not listen to classical music. In the present study there was not a significant difference

between mean test scores for calming (classical) music and aversive music. In the present study

participants completed the test while listening to music, the study by Jones and Estell (2007) had

participants listen to music before. Timing of auditory stimuli could have an effect on the results.

There were some limitations to this study. The sample was all female and there was not a

wide range of ages. Females could have a greater ability to concentrate than males do. Females

could also be more skilled than males at completing logic problems. The study consisted of

younger individuals, younger individuals could have a greater ability to concentrate than older

individuals. There was no screening done prior to the study to determine native language/culture

of an individual. If participants had never seen a square before, or English letters then they

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would have struggled with the task. There was no screening done to determine if individuals had

hearing disabilities. If participants were unable to hear the music the results would be inaccurate.

It was found that the quiet condition scored lower than the conditions with calming music and

the condition with aversive music. Participants could have scored lower if they were unable to

hear. A vision exam was not conducted. If participants were unable to see the logic problems,

then the task would have not been completed. The sample size was also small. The present study

was done using only one type of task. Logic problems were used. There may be a different result

for other subjects or other type of tasks.

Further research including males, a larger sample size, a sample size with a wide age

range should be conducted. Vision and auditory screening tests should be administered and a

pretest survey should be given to determine if there were any cultural factors affecting scores.

Further research should include tests with multiple problem types; possibly including math,

science, reading and vocabulary. The present study showed that distraction did not have an

effect on logic test scores.

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References

Albinoni, T.G. (2010). Adagio in G minor for violin, strings and organ, T. Mi 26 [Video file].

Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1krdb1b4UI

American Psychological Association. (2002). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of

conduct. American Psychologist, 57, 1060-1073.

Brown, L. (1990). Think book: Visually oriented problem-solving activities (pp. 47-49,

143,162,163). Nashville, Tenn.: Incentive Publications.

Cockerton, T., Moore, S., Norman, D. (1997). Cognitive Test Performance and Background

Music. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 85, 1435-1438.

Davidson, C., Powell, L. (1986). The Effects of Easy-Listening Background Music on the On-

Task Performance of Fifth-Grade Children. Journal of Educational Research, 80, 29-33.

Lilley, J. L., Oberle, C. D., & Thompson, J. J. (2014). Effects of music and grade consequences

on test anxiety and performance. Psychomusicology: Music, Mind, And Brain, 24(2),

184-190.

Jones, M. H., & Estell, D. B. (2007). Exploring the Mozart effect among high school students.

Psychology Of Aesthetics, Creativity, And The Arts, 1(4), 219-224.

Pickling, J. (2013). Narwhals narwhals swimming in the ocean [Video file]. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcYVCvBq0FY

Shih, Y., Huang, R., & Chiang, H. (2012). Background music: Effects on attention performance.

Work, 42(4), 573-578.

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Table 1

Means and Standard Deviations

Groups N Mean SD

Silent 12 29.17 15.64

Calming 12 38.25 18.31

Disruptive 12 38.42 21.67

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Table 2

ANOVA Table

SS df MS F Sig.

Distractions 672.39 2 336.19 1.52 .240

Error 4852.94 22 220.59

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Quiet Calming Disruptive 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

29.17

38.25 38.29

Figure 1. Means

Distraction Type

Mea

n Pr

oble

ms C

orre

ct15


Appendix A

Consent Form

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Consent FormYou are being invited to participate in a research study conducted by Dr. Fairbank’s Research Methods class in the Meredith College Psychology Department. Your participation is completely voluntary. Please read the information below and sign if you agree to participate.

ProcedureParticipation in this study will involve taking a logic quiz three times while music may or may not be playing in the background.

ConfidentialityAny information that is obtained during this study will remain confidential.

ParticipationParticipation is voluntary. You may with withdraw at any point during the study without any consequence. There will be extra credit for participation in this study. If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Fairbank at [email protected] or (919) 760-2264.

Signature of Participant Date

Signature of Researcher Date

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mailto:[email protected]


Appendix B

Instructions

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Instructions1. Introduce yourself.2. Hand out consent forms.

a. Give time for all participants to read and sign them.3. Collect all consent forms.4. Hand out packets of logic problems to participants.5. Divide participants based on the number on the packet they were given.6. Each packet begins in a different room.

a. Group 1 starts in Fairbank’s Office (Quiet)b. Group 2 starts in the Library (Calming Music)c. Group 3 remains in the Start room, Led 110 (Invasive Music)

7. After splitting participants, SAY: “You have 2 minutes to complete as many of the logic problems in your packet as possible.”

a. After 2 minutes, Groups will rotate locations and circumstances. i. Group 1 goes to Library

ii. Group 2 goes to Start roomiii. Group 3 goes to Office

b. Repeat procedure and rotate again.i. Group 1 goes to Start room

ii. Group 2 goes to Officeiii. Group 3 goes to Library

c. Repeat procedure.d. All participants return to Start room (Led 110)

8. After completion, collect the packets from the participants. 9. Hand out the debriefing forms to all participants.10. Answer any questions. 11. Participants are free to go.

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Appendix C

Logic Problems

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EFFECT OF DISTRACTORS 21


Appendix D

Debriefing Form

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Debriefing

Purpose The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of distractors on task performance in college-aged females at Meredith College. The hypothesis was that participant’s performance would increase as distractions decreased.

DeceptionThough there was no deception used, participants were not informed of expected results of each type of music.

Confidentiality and Results Individual test scores will not be reported but group test scores will be reported. Test scores will be anonymous and destroyed after the study. Results of the present study could help students as well as teachers acknowledge the effects of distractors on task performance.

Contact informationDiscussion and questions are encouraged. Should participants have questions, comments, concerns, or should participants no longer wish to have their test scores reported, please contact Dr. Fairbank at [email protected] or call 919.760.2264.

Thank you for participating in this study!

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mailto:[email protected]

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