PSYCH 7 Music Preference in Relation to Personality Type

1. Music Preference in
Relation to Personality
Type
By Andrea Perez, Brittney Westin, and Jenna
Stafford
Psych-7, Alison Buckley

2. ABSTRACT
A study was done exploring the relationship between personality type, specifically
introversion and extroversion, and music preference. To define music preference the
average beats per minute (bpm) of participant’s favored genres were used. It was
hypothesized that those exhibiting an extroverted personality type would favor music with
higher bpms when compared to those who have an introverted personality type.

3. INTRODUCTION/HYPOTHESIS
It was hypothesized that individuals with an extroverted personality type will prefer to listen to
music containing faster beats per minutes when compared to those who have an introverted
personality type.
Much like a standard personality test, music is linked to evoking certain types of emotions and
personality-specific characteristics (Pimentel, 2008).
In relation to this idea, is the fact that extroverts appear to be more energized and outgoing, while
their introverted counterparts seem to be shyer and more closed off; a detail that is worth noting
when music is such an integral part of self-expression in today’s society. Utilizing these two
ideas, it can be easily deduced that extroverts will prefer more upbeat music containing faster
beats per minute compared to their introverted counterparts.

4. METHODOLOGY / PARTICIPANTS
+ Study did not record demographic information
+ A survey was given anonymously via QR code and the WCC student feed
+ Our survey included multiple sections regarding personality type (intro/ extro), type of music
each participant favored, occasions of listening and how long they listen to music everyday,
and participant’s favorite song
+ In order to build our survey, we took a series of sample questions from the following (list them
here)
+ We were looking specifically at introversion and extroversion personality types, and average
beats per minute of a given genre for music preference.

5. RESULTS
1.6973 or greater is the number required to be
considered a significant correlation
r1= 0.664848 is the correlation number received
from the first personality data set
r2= 0.986095 is the correlation number received
from the second musical personality
questionnaire
Mean score for introverted bpm: 109.6
Mean Score for extroverted bpm: 108.4
Based on the results from this study,
there is not a high correlation between
the preferred beats per minute in music
and the person being introverted or
extroverted.

6. GRAPHING / DATA
Extroverted graph (left) and
Introverted graph (right) shows
the sum of each participant‘s
average favored bmp based on
the personality section of the
survey.

7. Extroverted graph (left) and
Introverted graph (right) shows
the sum of participant‘s average
favored bmp based on the
MPQR section of the survey

8. DISCUSSION
Comparing the results of bpm preference in both
the personality section of our survey and the
personality section of the music preference
questionnaire (MPQ-R), there was a difference
in which respondents classified as extroverts or
introverts.
Individuals who took the personality section of
our survey demonstrated a higher percentage of
extroverted traits, while individuals who took the
music personality questionnaire expressed in
majority more introverted traits.
This change in result and
demographic can be a
result of the difference in
actual personality and
music personality.
60% of the personality
results lined up with the
music personality
questionnaire results.
Personality v. MPQ-R

9. REFLECTION
In future studies, demographic information would be dire to demonstrate the
mediator and moderator aspects of the study, as well as take into account the
study’s target audience.
One may need to take into account what type of stimulus the extroverts thrive
from.
For future studies we might need to consider the difference between actual
personality and musical personality.

10. WORKS CITED /
REFERENCES
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Jung. Carl Jung. Retrieved April 3, 2022, from
https://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/jung.html
Duke, R. A. (1989). Musicians’ Perception of Beat in
Monotonic Stimuli. Journal of Research in Music
Education, 37(1), 61–71.
https://doi.org/10.2307/3344953
Guy-Evans, O. (2021, February 9). Introvert and Extrovert
Personality Traits. Simply Psychology. Retrieved from
https://www.simplypsychology.org/introvert-
extrovert.html#introvert
Hall, S. E., Schubert, E., & Wilson, S. J. (2016, November).
The Role of Trait and State Absorption in the
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Pimentel, C. E., & Donnelly, E. D. O. P. (2008). The relation
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