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Running Head: EFFECT OF DISTRACTORS 1
The Effect of Distractors on the Accuracy and Completion of Logic Problems
Sara K. Norris
Meredith College

EFFECT OF DISTRACTORS 2
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

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

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.

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.

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.
Method
Participants
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

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

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

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

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

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.

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.

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

Table 2
ANOVA Table
SS df MS F Sig.
Distractions 672.39 2 336.19 1.52 .240
Error 4852.94 22 220.59

29.17
38.25 38.29
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
Quiet Calming Disruptive
MeanProblemsCorrect
Distraction Type
Figure 1. Means

Appendix A
Consent Form

Consent Form
You 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.
Procedure
Participation in this study will involve taking a logic quiz three times while music may or may
not be playing in the background.
Confidentiality
Any information that is obtained during this study will remain confidential.
Participation
Participation 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 fairbankd@meredith.edu or (919) 760-2264.
Signature of Participant Date
Signature of Researcher Date

Appendix B
Instructions

Instructions
1. 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 room
iii. Group 3 goes to Office
b. Repeat procedure and rotate again.
i. Group 1 goes to Start room
ii. Group 2 goes to Office
iii. 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.

Appendix C
Logic Problems

Appendix D
Debriefing Form

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.
Deception
Though 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 information
Discussion 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 fairbank@meredith.edu or call 919.760.2264.
Thank you for participating in this study!

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