Running head: ATTENTION SPAN AFFECTED BY BACKGROUND NOISE

Attention Span Affected by Background Noise While Studying Brett Bonetti, Elizabeth Hares, Teavy Moeung, Tiffany Poon, Jessica Scott, Emily Severance Touro University Nevada (Group: OT Dynasty)

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Outline of Proposal: Attention Span Affected by Background Noise While Studying Research Question Does background noise affect a graduate students attention span when studying? Research Hypothesis It is hypothesized that background noise aids the attention span of graduate students while studying. Outline of Introduction What is the problem or issue that your study addresses? Most students have particular study habits in place when enrolled in a graduate level program. However, what if such habits are ineffective while studying? What if such habits are actually negatively impacting a students attention span? Many graduate students are in the habit of adding or subtracting background noise (music, television, silence, etc.) while studying. In this study, researchers are going to explore whether or not the addition of background noise aids or disrupts a graduate students attention span while studying. For the purpose of this particular study, attention span will be defined as the amount of time a student spends engaged in the educational material. Studying will be defined as time spent reviewing and looking over information relevant to a class/exam. The term studying will exclude breaks that the student engages in (bathroom breaks, playing games, time spent on facebook, etc.) Why is it important? Looking into whether or not background noise aids or disrupts a students studying, will greatly contribute to the knowledge of effective study habits that can be used later in the students educational career. Through a questionnaire, students will develop a selfawareness as to the (voluntary and involuntary) background noise they currently experience while studying. After conclusions are drawn as to which environment contributes to a longer

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attention span while studying, students can adapt their studying habits yielding the results of this study. By adapting their current study environment to a more effective environment, this may potentially increase the duration of a students attention span. Increasing the duration of a students attention span while engaged in studying may lead to better grades, and less stress for the student overall. Therefore, by researching which studying environment is most beneficial for a graduate students attention span and what factors may decrease attention span, researchers can develop a more specific hypothesis and conduct even further testing to discover how an effective studying environment may lead to decreased stress. Contributing to the effectiveness of graduate students study habits may also have a positive effect on the overall health and stress of the student. As demands for students (particularly graduate students) continue to rise, decreasing levels of stress a student experiences will increase their quality of life and decrease testing anxiety during the days leading up to the exam or during the exam itself. Furthermore, researching background noise and its effect on attention span with graduate students may be applicable to undergraduate students and high school students with further research conducted. What is known about the topic? There have been studies that prove music prompts the brain to pay attention (Baker, 2007) and sends positive signals throughout the body (Shelley, 2011). In fact, according to the Stanford School of Medicine, music engages the portions of the brain that are involved with making predictions and paying attention. However, researchers also found that the peak of brain activity occurred during the period of silence between musical movements (Baker, 2007). Furthermore, according to the Washington Post, music that an individual finds pleasing sends positive signals throughout the body. This signal releases high levels of dopamine. Thus proving why individuals want to listen to their favorite songs over and over

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again (Shelley, 2011). Listening to pleasing music can also lead to decreased levels of stress, improves anxiety and depression (Shelley, 2011). However, focusing on the effect of music while studying, and not just musics effect on the body/brain, demonstrates interesting findings. According to Stanford Universitys Professor Clifford Nass, the vocals found within music are processed on the same side of the brain that is used while studying (Strauss, 2009). Therefore, listening to music that contains vocals while studying negatively impacts the students cognitive abilities. Another study conducted by a professor in the Psychology Department of Music and Speech at Wooster College further supported this theory. In fact, research concluded that students listening to music with vocals while studying had trouble when attempting to commit information to memory (Hutchinson, 2012). This particular study also concluded that the division of attention is what led to the poor performance on short term memory tasks. Researchers suggested that students listen to music without vocals while studying to improve performance (Hutchinson, 2012). Not all studies, however, proved that music with vocals had a negative impact. An experiment conducted by the University of Nebraska at Omaha studied whether or not classical music and popular music have an effect on a students math performance (Kelly & Manthei). The study concluded that neither popular music nor classical music had any statistically significant impact on the students performance. Therefore, researchers concluded that music may not have an effect (neither positive nor negative) on a students performance. In another study, conducted by Rong-Hwa Huanga and Yi-Nuo Shih of China, looked at the impact of background music and its effect on the attention of workers (Huanga & Shih, 2009). This study concluded that the level of attention was impacted by a workers fondness to the music playing (instead of whether or not the music contained vocals). If the worker was extremely fond of the

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background music, their level of attention decreased. If the individual was impartial to the songs, his/her level of attention was not significantly impacted. In conclusion, there are some conflicting reports. Some studies suggest that the absence or presence of vocals impacts the level of attention of the individual, while other studies suggest that it is the individuals fondness to the music is what causes their level of attention to decrease or increase. Researchers know that music sends positive signals throughout the body and prompts the brain to pay attention. However, it is unclear as to whether or not background noise impacts a students attention span while studying. Through pursuing research to determine whether or not background noise affects a students attention span, the results will provide clarity to this ambiguous matter. What has worked? Each graduate student is different and has different preferences of environments that they place themselves in while studying. Therefore, which studying environment enhances greater attention span may differ depending on the student. Each individual student chooses to place themselves in an environment with or without background noise depending on how well they can multi-task. Graduate students may think that they are currently studying in the most effective environment for them, however, with more research conducted on the subject, students may want to adjust their studying environment to study more efficiently. Studying more efficiently means having a longer attention span while studying. Researchers also understand that the environment in which one studies may not be voluntary, but this research will yield a greater understanding of which environment is ideal for graduate students while studying. A longer attention span while studying will hopefully lead to less stress, better grades, and a better quality of life for the student which can be validated by future

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research. This research will provide the foundation for such research in the future that may be generalizable to large student population. How will your study add to the knowledge base once it is done? Students can choose to adapt their studying environment to create the longest attention span based on the findings. Even if students do not wish to adapt their study environment, they may choose to increase or decrease the volume amount of background noise experienced while studying. For example, if a student listens to music while studying, based on findings, the student may choose to increase or decrease the volume of music playing when studying in the future (or eliminate any background noise completely). There are many ways that this research will aid the graduate student population. However, the impact will be seen more on an individual level of each graduate student depending on what they change about their study environment. What new information will your study add to our understanding of the topic or addressing the topic/problem? This particular study will add information to the question, which studying environment (the addition of background noise or the elimination of background noise) is most effective on a students attention span. Therefore, more specific, the researchers are asking the question: does background noise affect a students attention span when studying? The results from this study will demonstrate if the addition of background noise aids or disrupts the students attention span while studying. The researchers will aim to generalize this new found data to students of all ages. Furthermore, through conducting this research, the researchers will provide the foundation for further and more specific studies. For example, knowing that background noise aids or disrupts the students attention span, researchers can therefore explore if certain particular noise may have more of less of an affect than others. Moreover, researchers can determine whether or having a longer attention span impacts a students grades and overall stress

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levels. This study may serve as the foundational tool for future questions and research about study environments that are most useful to the students needs Outline of Design What type of quantitative study, descriptive or experimental? This study is a descriptive quantitative study, exemplified through the use of a questionnaire, and the lack of an experiment. Researchers are asking graduate students to self-report data, analyze the data collected, and draw results from the collected data. This will help establish other questions and further research that can be conducted. Further research may not be limited to a descriptive design, however. Which part of the class will be your participants and what sampling method will you use? In order to conduct this study and provide valid results that are potentially generalizable, the researchers will be asking every graduate student of the Touro University Nevadas Occupational Therapy Class of 2015 to participate. Those that turn down the request, and do not consent to filling out the questionnaire will be excluded from the study. This particular study is using the sampling method known as convenience sampling. The participants in the study are chosen conveniently, not randomly. What are the procedures for conducting data in your study? Researchers will provide a questionnaire for students to fill out five minutes prior to the conclusion of (Research) class one day (the date will be determined upon the approval of Dr. Costa). Giving the students time to fill out the questionnaire in person will yield in higher completion results as opposed to emailing the questionnaire to all participants. Furthermore, the researchers will stay after class for fifteen minutes, asking that after the participants complete the questionnaire, they turn in the questionnaires immediately. This will ensure that most participants do not lose or misplace their

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completed questionnaires. Please see attached for the questionnaire that the researchers will give to the participants. Are you using any other instruments? The self-reporting questionnaires will be the only instruments used for this research study. What methods for data analysis are you planning on using? The researchers will use the SPSS program for data analysis of the data collected by all participants via the self-reporting questionnaires. Microsoft Excel will also be used to organize the data collected. Outline of Results For what period of time did you recruit the participants? The participants in this study were asked to fill out a questionnaire, self-reporting personal information about their study habits, study environments, background noise while studying, their current grade point average (GPA), etc. All participants completed the twelve question questionnaire within approximately fifteen minutes of receiving them. The researchers collected the questionnaires from each individual participant once completed. Because the participants were simply asked to self-report data based on recalled information, the participants only took fifteen minutes to fill out the questionnaire. There was no outside work or time required of the participants. Who did you actually get in your study? Researchers asked the entire Occupational Therapy Cohort of 2015 at Touro University of Nevada to participate in this study, excluding the researchers involved with the study. The researchers decided not to include themselves in the data collection due to the potential skewing of data. The research hypothesis clearly states that background noise aids the attention span of students. If the researchers were to participate in the study already knowing the hypothesis, they might unintentionally answer the questions with a biased perspective. There are 37 members of the Occupational Therapy Cohort of 2015, and six

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of the 37 members were researchers of this study. Therefore, there were 31 members of the cohort that were asked to participate. How many people were recruited, how many refused, and how many completed the study? Of the 31 members of the Occupational Therapy Cohort of 2015 that were recruited to participate in the study, 30 students participated. Consent was indirectly asked of the participants in the study by asking them to fill out the self-reporting questionnaire. The one student that did not complete the questionnaire, indirectly refused participation. All 30 students that filled out the questionnaire, turned in their completed questionnaires, and therefore completed the study. However, there was one student whose questionnaire was not filled out correctly, and therefore had to be discarded. In conclusion, there were 29 participants whose data was collected and analyzed. How many were randomly assigned to the control group or the treatment group? This particular study followed a descriptive quantitative design. Therefore, the random assignment of participants (to control and treatment groups) was not executed. Random assignment of participants into groups is a component of research that follows an experimental design. You can describe the demographics of your actual sample here, and many authors refer readers to a table. Of the 29 participants, seven of them are male and 22 of them are female. 16 of the participants are 20 to 25 years of age. Eight of the participants are 26 to 29 years old, and five participants are 30 years or older. Please refer to Table 1 for a chart demonstrating the ages of participants in the study. The questionnaire did not include any other questions about the demographics of the sampled population. As previously stated, all participants are a part of the Occupational Therapy Cohort of 2015 at Touro University Nevada. All graduate students are living in the Henderson/Las Vegas area in order to attend school.

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Mention all results and the data analysis used to obtain your results. The researchers put the data into two groups: those that studied without background music and those that studied with background music. The mean, median, and modes were taken of each group. Please refer to Table 2 for the breakdown of means between groups. Please refer to Table 3 for the breakdown of medians between groups. Please refer to Table 4 for the breakdown of modes between groups. Then a t-test was conducted to see if the differences between groups were statistically significant. With a p value of .119, this value told the researchers that the difference between groups was not statistically significant. Therefore, background noise does not have an effect on a students attention span. Please refer to Table 5 for a breakdown of the t test and p value results. Outline of Discussion Begin this section with a clear statement of support or nonsupport for your original research hypotheses or research question. Interpret and evaluate your results to show how your findings can contribute to the broader knowledge about your topic. The original research hypothesis (which stated background noise aids the attention span of graduate students while studying) was not supported. After collecting the data via the questionnaires, the researchers separated the data into two groups. Group 1 was comprised of students that had selfreported experiencing background noise (voluntary or involuntary) while studying. Group 2 was comprised of students that did not experience background noise while studying. The researchers then ran statistical analysis of the data to see if the research hypothesis was supported. The mean, median, and mode of each group were calculated and compared to one another through Microsoft Excel. See table 1 for the mean, median, and modes of each group. The researchers then conducted a t-test through Microsoft Excel. The t-test calculated whether or not having the presence of background noise was statistically significant when looking at the impact on

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attention span while studying. If the results show a statistical significance, it would suggest that one groups attention span was a lot longer than the other groups. The researchers hypothesized that the group that experiences background noise (voluntarily or involuntarily) while studying would have a greater attention span. However, the results concluded that there was no significant difference between groups when looking at attention span (breaks taken per hour). The p value is .05 in this particular study, and the level of statistical significance when looking at the number of breaks taken per hour was .119. Because this figure was above the .05 p value, the null hypothesis (that no significant difference) was accepted. Please refer to the table below to see a table demonstrating the t-test results. Because there was no statistical significance shown between Group 1 and Group 2, it is concluded that the presence or absence of background noise does not have an effect on a students attention span while studying. This conclusion and results are further supported by other studies as well. According to the study by the University of Nebraka at Omaha, students were not affected when performing mathematical tests with classical music and popular music in the background. The study concluded that music (neither classical nor popular) impacted the students performance. Research also showed that when listening to music, the brains activity peaks during the silent breaks between musical movements. Unfortunately, due to the small sample size, inconsistent self-reporting, and the convenient nature of the sampled participants, the results of this study are not very generalizable. Future research needs to be conducted. Although the results were supported by another study, another study without as many limitations needs to be conducted. Outline of Limitations

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Discuss potential limitations affecting internal validity or external validity, e.g., any sources of bias such as sampling, imprecise measures, or other weaknesses in the study, etc. A potential limitation is found in the sample itself. The sample includes 29 students; however, augmenting the sample size would have yielded more accurate results. Furthermore, with a larger sample size, the results would be more generalizable to graduate students across the United States (increasing the studys external validity). Moreover, the sample was gathered through convenience sampling. This is a limitation because the 29 participants of the Occupational Therapy Cohort of 2015 at Touro University Nevada are not (presumably) representative of all graduate school cohorts in the United States. The sample is also not (presumably) representative of other occupational therapy cohorts within Touro University Nevada. It would have been a more representative sample of the graduate student population if the participants were randomly selected. The size of the sample and the type of sample discussed is a limitation in this study. Because the participants were partaking in multiple studies at the same time, this may have altered the results, and therefore is a limitation/weakness of the study. Participating in multiple studies at once is known as co-intervention. Results of this particular study may have been skewed due to the co-intervention. This is because the participants may have been tired of filling out surveys, therefore rushing through this particular questionnaire. The results were selfreported, and therefore may also have been reported inaccurately due to the other studies being performed at the same time (students may have been asked to change their study habits/environments in another study). This limitation may have affected the results of the study, which suggests future research should be conducted on background noise and its effect on attention span.

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Because the participants and the researchers are classmates within the same cohort, the participants may have reported false data (referred to as self-reporting bias) in order to appear as a better student to the researchers. Even though the questionnaires were filled out anonymously, self-reporting bias may have occurred. This is because the participants handed the questionnaires (when finished) to the researchers individually, and participants knew this was required before filling out the questionnaire. Researchers noticed some data that could have been falsely reported due to this bias. For example, the number of students that reported having a 4.0 was astonishing. This is just one example of the potential for (intentionally or unintentionally) reporting false data. If future research is conducted, this limitation needs to be accounted for and avoided. The last limitation noticed by the researchers is the questionnaire itself. Some questions were worded poorly and caused confusion for the participants. Some participants asked the researchers to clarify the meaning of certain questions. The researchers tried to answer as broadly as possible; however, their assistance may have skewed the data reported. If some participants did not ask the researchers to clarify questions that they did not understand, these participants may have unintentionally self-reported wrong data. If future research is conducted, the wording of questions should be reanalyzed. Explain what remains unsolved at the end of your study. Here you can discuss recommendations for future research. Unfortunately, when looking over the completed questionnaires, some participants reported their GPAs in numeric form, and others reported their GPAs in letter grade form. Researchers did not know which letter grades reported corresponded to which classes, and because classes are weighted differently due to the number of credits, the researchers could not accurately convert the letter grades into a GPA. Therefore, the researchers

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were unable to determine whether or not background noise had any effect on attention span through analyzing participants GPAs. This portion of the study remains unsolved. This discrepancy between some of the participants within the study suggests that the internal validity of this study was threatened. If further research was conducted, researchers should request the participants to self-report their GPA in numeric form. This way the researchers can analyze whether or not participants attention span while studying in certain environments is correlated to having a higher GPA. Discuss limitations in the ability to generalize the findings. The small sample size threatens the ability to generalize any findings from this study. The sample size is not representative of the general graduate student population (affecting the external validity), and therefore cannot be generalized to other groups of students. The fact that the sample was gathered conveniently instead of randomly also prevents the study from being generalizable. This is because the sample is not representative of the United States graduate student population, and the results might be attributed to socioeconomic status, demographics, or other attributions (and therefore cannot be applied to the general public). The internal validity was also threatened, because some participants reported their GPAs in numeric form, and others reported their GPA in letter form. The inability of the researchers to correctly calculate all participants GPAs disrupts this aspect of the results from being generalized. It also restricted the researchers from comparing the GPA of participants within the study.

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References Baker, M. (2007, August 01). Music moves brain to pay attention, stanford study finds. Retrieved September 08, 2013, from http://med.stanford.edu/news_ releases/2007 /july/music.html Huanga, Rong-Hwa , and Yi-Nuo Shih. "Effects of background music on concentration of workers." IOS PressWork 38 (2009): n. pag. Word Press. Web. 11 Sept. 2013 Hutchinson, J. (2012, October 25). Listening to music while studying: Helpful or hurtful?. Retrieved from http://musicandspeech.voices.wooster.edu/listening-to-music-whilestudying-helpful-or-hurtful/ Kelly, S. N. & Manthei, M. Effects of popular and classical background music on the math test scores of undergraduate students. Unpublished manuscript, University of Nebraska at Omaha. Retrieved from http://music.arts.usf.edu/rpme/effects.htm. Shelley, K. (2011, February 28). Listening to music can prompt the brain to send positive signals throughout the body. Retrieved from www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/ article/2011/02/28/AR2011022806231_pf.html Strauss, V. (2009, October 20). Checking it out: does music interfere with studying?. Retrieved from http://voices.washingtonpost.com/answer-sheet/checking-it-out/checking-it-outdoes-music-int.html

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Questionnaire for Occupational Therapy Students Class of 2015

Team: OT Dynasty

Directions: This questionnaire is to be filled out anonymously. Please turn in the completed questionnaire immediately after completion. Thank you! 1. How old are you? Please circle the category that applies to you: a. 20 to 25 b. 26 to 29 c. 30 or older 2. Please circle the gender that applies to you: a. Male b. Female 3. How many hours do you study for per session? a. 0 to 1 b. 2 to 3 c. 4 to 5 d. 6 to 7 e. 8 to 9 f. 10 or more 4. How many breaks do you take within an hour when studying? a. 0 to 1 b. 2 to 3 c. 4 to 5 d. 6 to 7 e. 8 to 9 f. 10 or more 5. Do you experience background noise (voluntary or involuntary) when studying for an exam? a. Yes b. No 6. Do you experience background noise (voluntary or involuntary) when studying for a quiz? a. Yes b. No 7. Do you experience background noise (voluntary or involuntary) when studying on a regular basis? a. Yes b. No

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8. What is the volume level of background noise you experience when studying? a. High b. Medium c. Low d. None 9. What are the types of background noise you experience? a. Music b. Television c. Household Noises (children playing, etc.) d. Coffee Shop Noises e. Nature f. None (Silence) g. Other: ____________________ 10. If you listen to music while studying, please identify the genre of music you listen to, and circle whether or not the music has/lacks lyrics: a. Genre ____________________ b. Lyrics? Yes No 11. How many types of background noises do you experience at once while studying? a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4 e. Other 12. Please list your current G.P.A.

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TABLE 1: Ages of Participants

Number of Participants

Years of Age

Table 1 Notes: This table demonstrates how many participants fell into each age category.

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Table 2 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances Breaks Within the Hour Variabl e1 2 0.6 11 0 23 1.6188 51 0.0595 56 1.7138 72 0.1191 12 2.0686 58 Variabl e2 1.5 0.7352 94 18

Mean Variance Observations Hypothesized Mean Difference df t Stat P(T<=t) one-tail t Critical one-tail P(T<=t) two-tail t Critical two-tail

Table 2 Notes: Table 2 lists the results found from the Two Sample t-Test Assuming Unequal Variances preformed in Excel. As you can see, the P(T<=t) two-tail value is .119112.

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Table 3: Chart of Means

Blue: Group 1 Maroon: Group 2

Answers from questionnaire

Categories of Studying Environments

Table 3 Notes: This is a chart displaying the differences of means between Group 1 and Group 2. Group 1 is comprised of the students that experienced background noise while studying. Group 2 is comprised of students that did not experience background noise while studying. The numbers along the y axis are taken from our data analysis of the questionnaire. Therefore 1 represents the first answer option, not necessarily 1 hour. Please refer to answer options on questionnaire for more in-depth explanation.
Table 4: Chart of Medians

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Answers from Questionnaire

Category of Studying Environment

Table 4 Notes: This is a chart displaying the differences of medians between Group 1 and Group 2. Group 1 is comprised of the students that experienced background noise while studying. Group 2 is comprised of students that did not experience background noise while studying. The numbers along the y axis are taken from our data analysis of the questionnaire. Therefore 1 represents the first answer option, not necessarily 1 hour.

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Table 5: Chart of Modes

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Answers from Questionnaire

Categories of Studying Environment

Table 5 Notes: This is a chart displaying the differences of modes between Group 1 and Group 2. Group 1 is comprised of the students that experienced background noise while studying. Group 2 is comprised of students that did not experience background noise while studying. The numbers along the y axis are taken from our data analysis of the questionnaire. Therefore 1 represents the first answer option, not necessarily 1 hour.