Could listening to Justin Bieber be good for your CAREER? Pop music in the office speeds up work, study claims

  • 88 per cent of employees improved accuracy when listening to music
  • And around 80 per cent completed faster work when music was played
  • If you’re doing your tax returns, classical music improves maths skills
  • Listening to Jessie J or Justin Bieber could also improve your speed

By Ellie Zolfagharifard for MailOnline

Published: | Updated:

Whether it is Mozart or Miley, your choice of music could determine whether you will perform well at your job.

A new study suggests that listening to music in the office improves the speed and accuracy of tasks such as data entry, proof reading and problem solving.

In an office-based experiment, 88 per cent of participants were found to produce their most accurate work when listening to music.

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If you’re doing your tax returns, then classical music such as Mozart is the most effective as it improves accuracy
Listening to Justin Bieber could improve your speed, with 58 per cent of participants completing data entry tasks faster when listening to pop songs

If you’re doing your tax returns, then classical music such as Mozart (left) is the most effective as it improves accuracy. Listening to Justin Bieber (right) could improve your speed, with 58 per cent of participants completing data entry tasks faster when listening to pop songs

The study also found that 81 per cent completed their fastest work when music was played.

And it matters what type of music you listen to. For instance, if you’re doing your tax returns, then classical music is the most effective as it improves maths skills.

Listening to Jessie J or Justin Bieber could also improve your speed, with 58 per cent of participants completing data entry tasks faster while listening to pop songs.

During proof-reading, dance music, such as David Guetta, had the biggest positive impact with participants increasing their speed by 20 per cent compared to tests undertaken with no music at all.

Dance music also had a positive effect on spell-checking with a 75 per cent pass rate compared to 68 per cent when no music was played at all.

During proof-reading, dance music, had the biggest positive impact, with participants increasing their speed by 20 per cent compared to tests undertaken with no music at all. Dance also music had a positive effect on spell-checking with a 75 per cent pass rate compared to 68 per cent when no music was played at all

During proof-reading, dance music, had the biggest positive impact, with participants increasing their speed by 20 per cent compared to tests undertaken with no music at all. Dance also music had a positive effect on spell-checking with a 75 per cent pass rate compared to 68 per cent when no music was played at all

THE APP THAT BOOSTS BRAIN POWER BY 400 PER CENT 

Listening to music while battling through a work assignment or doing mind-numbing admin can be tempting.

And while some people claim that music passes the time, others find it distracting.

Now an app called Focus@Will claims to boost your attention span by up to 400 per cent, using ‘neuroscience-based music channels’.

The music is designed to help people focus and ‘effortlessly zone out distractions’ as well as retain information while studying.

Half of people listen to music while working, but it could be the ‘wrong’ music, according to the company behind the app, because songs with lyrics are designed to connect with people emotionally – distracting them.

The app has ‘attention amplifying’ music channels, which the San Francisco-based start-up says are scientifically designed ‘to engage with the brain’s limbic system.

‘This soothes the easily distracted fight or flight mechanism, increasing attention span and general focus,’ it says. 

The research, undertaken by Brighton-based Mindlab International, suggests that silent offices may be the least productive. 

‘The MusicWorks experiment revealed a positive correlation between music and productivity – overall it showed that when listening to music, nine out of 10 people performed better,’ said Dr David Lewis, chairman of Mindlab International.

‘Music is an incredibly powerful management tool in increasing the efficiency of a workforce.

'It can exert a highly beneficial influence over employee morale and motivation, helping enhance output and even boosting a company’s bottom line.’

The research also showed that when people sat in silence, they made the most mistakes while solving equations and spell-checking.

Ambient music worked best for accurate data entry tasks, with participants scoring a high pass rate of 92 per cent.

‘The increase in levels of productivity when music is playing is striking,’ said Paul Clements, Director of Public Performance Sales, PRS for Music.

‘This project provides a refreshing reminder of the multiple benefits to be gained from listening to music at work.’

Justin Bieber

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