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Psychology
Heavy
metal and depression
Youngsters aged 15 to 17 years who listen to heavy metal
music are generally more prone to depression than adolescents
who prefer other types of music. This is the conclusion
of a study by Dave Miranda, a doctoral student in Psychology
at Université de Montréal. Based on a survey
of 348 teens he talked to in Montréal area secondary
schools, he showed a correlation between some styles of
music and feelings of depression in adolescents.
In all, 23 styles of music in five major categories were
analyzed: metal (which includes hard rock and heavy metal),
pop (Britney Spears belongs to this category), hip hop
(Afro-American music such as reggae, rhythm and blues and
rap), repertory music (such as jazz and classical music)
and electronic music (popular among fans of techno). Of
all these styles, hip hop is most closely associated with
positive moods, while metal is situated at the other extreme.
For his research, the psychologist asked teenagers to
assign a preference level to different music styles on
a scale from 1 to 5. At the same time, they filled in a
questionnaire on symptoms of depression such as lack of
appetite, fatigue or low enjoyment of different activities.
The depression scale was compared with the choice of music
for each case.
The fact that Bob Marley comes out way ahead of Metallica
in the happiness category came as no surprise to the researcher. “Metal
music often conveys negative images, e.g., about death
and violence. We therefore expected that this musical subculture
would be associated with a high level of depression. Rap,
meanwhile, generally conveys messages of success, resistance
and perseverance, which correlate with very low levels
of depression.”
Dave Miranda's studies could provide crucial information
for social workers and psychologists interested in early
diagnosis of depression, a problem that affects between
5% and 20% of teens. “Anyone, young or old, may occasionally
be subject to temporary feelings of depression that pass
without any consequences. But when you realize that, for
some adolescents, this feeling can degenerate into a real
illness and continue into adulthood, it becomes important
to identify early signs as quickly as possible,” he notes.
Further analysis of these findings shows that girls and
boys react to music differently. In teenage girls, the
correlations between feelings of depression and musical
styles are stronger. “This is undoubtedly because they
tend to pay more attention to the words. As a result, they
are more influenced by the message, positive or negative.”
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