Some of these soundscapes have been marketed via mobile phone apps as digital drugs. Binaural beats as digital pleasuresīinaural beats have also been incorporated into music, soundscapes and other consumer-facing products, including meditation tracks. Emerging research indicates ASMR may have therapeutic benefits for mental health, which highlights the broader potential of digital sounds. Studies looking at improving attention haven’t found evidence of an effect.īinaural beats can be positioned within a range of other commonly used digital sound-based therapies such as ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response). Studies have found binaural beats have an effect on stress, anxiety and memory. Studies using high-quality designs have also consistently shown effects: using a double-blinded randomised control cross-over trial (the gold standard of clinical study), binaural beats reduced pain intensity, stress and use of analgesic drugs in chronic pain patients, compared with a placebo stimulation. A dose-response effect was found, meaning greater exposure to the sounds increased their effectiveness as a therapy. However, there have been conflicting findings around its effects on concentration.įor example, a meta-analysis that included 22 studies on the effect of binaural beats on memory, attention, anxiety and pain relief found across all studies a statistically significant and consistent effect. Research investigating binaural beats has found positive effects for pain alleviation, anxiety reduction, and memory. Sounds like hype: there's scant evidence the 'binaural beats' illusion relaxes your brain This third frequency is thought to produce a range of effects, including relaxation and attentiveness.Īcademic research has focused on two main uses for binaural beats:Ģ) as a substitute for or complement to psychoactive drug use (drugs that affect the nervous system and alter perception, mood, cognition or behaviour). These two tones are then processed within our brains to sound like a third frequency. The perceptual auditory illusion created by binaural beats occurs when two pure tones of slightly different frequencies are presented to each ear. RMIT University provides funding as a strategic partner of The Conversation AU.įederation University Australia and Australian National University provide funding as members of The Conversation AU. Davis, and Naomi Smith do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Monica Barratt receives funding from the National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs.Īlexia Maddox, Jenny L. Lecturer in Sociology, Federation University Australia Senior Lecturer in the School of Sociology, Australian National University Research Fellow, Blockchain Innovation Hub, RMIT, RMIT University Our meta-analysis adds to the growing evidence that binaural-beat exposure is an effective way to affect cognition over and above reducing anxiety levels and the perception of pain without prior training, and that the direction and the magnitude of the effect depends upon the frequency used, time under exposure, and the moment in which the exposure takes place.Vice Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow, Social and Global Studies Centre and Digital Ethnography Research Centre, RMIT University Time under exposure contributed significantly to the model indicating that longer periods are advisable to ensure maximum effectiveness. Moreover, the findings suggest that binaural-beat exposure before, and before and during the task produces superior results than exposure during the task. Meta-regression results indicated that it does not seem to be necessary to mask binaural beats with white noise or pink noise in terms of effectiveness, obtaining similar effects with unmasked binaural beats. The results, based on 35 effect sizes, showed an overall medium, significant, consistent effect size (g = 0.45). Twenty-two studies met our inclusion criteria for this meta-analysis. The objective of this meta-analysis was to study the effect of binaural beats on memory, attention, anxiety, and analgesia. It has been suggested that binaural beats can influence cognition and mental states among others. Binaural auditory beats are a perceptual phenomenon that occurs when presenting separately to each ear two tones that slightly differ in their frequency.
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