6 ways your brain transforms sound into emotion

1. EMOTION
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3. UCLA researchers have found that certain sounds are universally
associated across cultures with:
 Amusement
 Fear
 Anger
 Disgust
 Sadness
 Surprise

4. Bidgee [CC BY-SA 3.0 au (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-
sa/3.0/au/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons
The sound of thunder evokes
either a feeling of relaxation
or anxiety.
Fireworks evoke either a
feeling of nostalgia or
anxiety.
By Frank Vincentz (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)
or CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via
Wikimedia Commons
By Victorgrigas (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via
Wikimedia Commons
The sound of a vibrating cell
phone is perceived either as
annoying or exciting.

6. Researchers from Sweden’s Lund University identified 6 psychological mechanisms
by which sound evokes emotions and helps to explain why the reaction is sometimes
universal and sometimes dependent on the person.
The 6 mechanisms:
1. Brainstem Reflex
2. Evaluative Conditioning
3. Emotional Contagion
4. Visual Imagery
5. Episodic Memory
6. Music Expectancy

7. Henry Vandyke Carter [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
When you hear a loud, unexpected,
abrupt sound, you are immediately
compelled to investigate.
This reaction is hard-wired into
your brain to alert you to
immediately respond to potentially
dangerous or important sounds.

8. By Allan Ajifo [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)],
via Wikimedia Commons
A song played during your
wedding day may bring feelings
of joy…
Photo by Tijl Vercaemer:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/skender/1242203613
While the same song heard
during a funeral will produce
the opposite feelings of sadness.

9. Photo by Richard foster:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/93963757@N05/8551937456
Research in the 1990s discovered
“mirror neurons” that activate in
our brains when we watch someone
perform an action.
That’s why it’s hard to not smile
and laugh when you see others
doing the same.

10. Photo by Johntex, 2006.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gentle_waves_come_in_at_a_sandy_beach.JPG
Sounds can evoke images
which in turn evoke emotions.
For example, do you enjoy
listening to the sounds of
nature?
Try listening to an audio
recording of waves crashing
and NOT visualizing yourself
lounging at the beach.

11. Sound can trigger both good and bad
memories, depending on how the
sound was paired with a single
event.
That’s why the sound of lightning
can create fear and anxiety in those
suffering from post-traumatic-stress-
disorder from combat experience, for
example.
By TraumaAndDissociation:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/traumaanddissociation/15799064142

12. Ktims at the English language Wikipedia:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:C_sharp_and_double_sharp_music.svg
Music is nothing more than a
random assortment of sounds…
Music is emotionally appealing
only because your brain
imposes order and structure to
the sounds…
Your expectations about
rhythm and melody provide
this order and structure, and
therefore your emotional
reaction.

14. When you lose your hearing, you not only lose the
ability to hear sounds…
You also lose the emotional impact associated with
those sounds.

15. By Mwanner (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL
(http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons
During hikes, you miss
out on the faint sounds
of flowing water.
By Vancouver 125 - The City of Vancouver from Vancouver, Canada
[CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via
Wikimedia Commons
Music loses its emotional
punch when you can’t hear
certain instruments.
By Ben Schumin (Flickr: Mircom Fire Alarm Horn/Strobe)
[CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-
sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
You increase your risk of
injury when you can’t hear
alarms.

16. The bottom line: hearing is more important to our lives—and to our
emotional lives—than we probably realize. It also means that treating
your hearing loss will probably have a greater impact than you realize,
too.
What are some of your favorite sounds? What emotions do they evoke?