The Effect of Music

on the Food and Beverages Consumption

Natcha Eksangkul (Gail), student id: 14959

BA(hons) Arts Management Level 2

Introduction

Music is one of the oldest art forms that has been a part of every society. In every country, everyday,
people have been influenced by music unknowingly. Every time people entered the restaurant, most
of them don't even bother to acknowledge the music that were playing in the background. They
have ignored the presence of music, not knowing that music is a part of creating artificial desire by
the diners. Like what North and Hargreave(2003) said music is capable of evoking complex
effective and behavior responses in consumers.

As music is another form of communication, human's mind and body have been affected by
music in various way. Music can play tricks with moods and feelings, leaving people question the
course of their actions. When music has been used to create the perfect settings for restaurants or
bars, it can enlarge appetite and enhance the appreciation of the meal. It's also found to be the way
to extend the duration of the meal, which result in higher purchase bill and amount of food and
beverages intake. However, the research also suggested that different tempo of music led to
different results of the food and beverages consumptions.

In this essay, the readers will be acknowledged the journals, studies, experiments done by
other scholars on the effect of music on food and beverages consumption, as well as consumers'
behavior in the restaurants. All the researches found have led to support the statement that music
increases the amount of food and beverages consumption in the restaurant. Based on the scientific
theories, statistics, and explanations, there will be three main arguments in this essay; music and
atmosphere, music and heart rate, and music and human's brain.

Thesis Statement:
Music increases the amount of food and beverages consumption and time spent in the restaurants.

Literature Review:
For years, the relationship between music and restaurants has been studied. Various sources of
research have agreed that music play a big role in dining experience. According to the research,
chewing intensity is influenced by the tempo of music (Rohally, Rongo Schwantes, Steger and
Wininger, 1985). The experiment has been conducted by Fairfield University(1985) to test the speed
of bites per different music tempo. The result came up that eating speed increased when the fasttempo music were played, which proved the hypothesis of the experiment right. Similar hypothesis
were made regarding alcohol consumption behavior. Bach and Schaefer (1979) stated clearly that
music affects the speed of drinking consumption.

For that has been said, the experiment also suggested that consumers tend to drink more
when slow-tempo music were played as compare to when fast-tempo music were played. Back to
the question of how music affect consumers' behavior, the answer would be that it does not only
affect the speed of food and beverages consumption, but also the amount of food and beverages
consumption. According to Milliman (1982), studies of the supermarket shoppers' behavior showed
that the tempo of background music has a big effect on the in-store traffic flow and sales volume.
The flow was found to be a lot slower with slow-tempo music than when the fast-tempo music were
played. Even though the fast-tempo music tend to speed up the pace of in-store traffic flow, the
slow-tempo music was found to be the reason behind higher sales volume. However, the subject in
the experiment were no more or less to recall the background music that was being played
(Milliman, 1982). The studies of the effect of music on consumers' behavior by Milliman (1982)
have led to further studies on the effect of music on food consumption.

It has been found that environment is capable of enhancing the motivation to eat (Stroebele
and Castro's, 2006). The studies and experiment conducted by Stephanie Wilson (2003) concluded
that different types of music can influence the amount of money patrons are willing to pay

differently. As well as the amount of food and beverages consumption. The result has shown that
people purchased least when there was no music being played and purchased most when popular
and jazz music were played. It can be linked to the idea of musical fit, where music conveys and
triggers relevant information leading the consumers' to associate different genre of music to
different type of products and price range (Wilson, 2003).

Based on the literature, the conclusion could be drawn that music affect the consumption of
food and beverages. Numbers of experiment have been conducted to support and prove this idea.
The literature reviewed above provides evidences that music has an influence on factors such as, the
speed of food and beverages consumption, and the amount of food and beverages consumption.

Arguments /Assertions:

Music and atmosphere

Music is one of the most important elements to create the right settings in the restaurants. It is found
to be the tool to manipulate customers into a particular atmosphere and experience they will
perceive. Music is capable of creating different settings. It stimulates moods in people, for example
the music that McDonald's play and the music that fine dining play are completely different. In
McDonald's, fast-tempo music such as popular music is played to give the customers the impression
of rush hour, so that the customers will finish their meal quickly and return the table in no time. On
the other hand, the music played in fine dinning is more likely to be classical, instrumental, slowtempo and not as loud compare to the fast-food stores. By doing so, the customers are more
comfortable to relax, take time on their meals and most importantly enjoy the experience of dining
in the restaurant.

Apart from manipulating the atmosphere, music also play a role in creating an identity. It
has been suggested that people are likely to spend more time and money in a restaurant or retail
environment if the music being played is considered appropriate (Radocy and Boyle,1997). This is
also one of the reasons why different type of restaurants play different genre of music. People who
decided to dine in a fine dining wouldn't expect to be in an environment where upbeat and loud
music are played and those who go to the clubs wouldn't expect to hear classical music being played
too. If the inappropriate music are chosen to be played, the atmosphere of the diners can be shifted
which lead to a high possibility of disappointment and confusion in the patrons. Therefore, it will
possibly lead to the less consumption of food and beverages. And the customers might not be
willing to spend a lot of time in the restaurant.

Music and heart rate

Music and human bodies have been studied for a long period of time. The studies conducted have
suggested that the heart rate increase when the fast-tempo music is played. And the heart rate
decrease when the slow-tempo music is played. From the statements made, it won't be a surprise if
music is capable of fastening or slowing human's action. Listening to fast-tempo music while eating
can lead to the increase in speed of eating. Therefore, it means that there's a higher possibility that
people will overeat or consume more food. It is commonly known that eating slowly is
recommended for those people who try to control or lose weight. As stomach takes 20 minutes to
send the signal to the brain that it is full. For that 20 minutes, if a person eats very fast, he or she is
more likely to be suffered from the significant amount of food intake in 20 minutes. Hence,
biologists have suggested people to chew the food slowly, try to savor the food as long as they
could before swallowing. In that way, they give their brains 20 minutes to acknowledge the capacity
left in the stomach and most importantly is to prevent overeating.

From the paragraph above, it has shown that music can lead to the increase in food and
beverages consumption. A study conducted has shown that eating while music is played in the
background increase the meal duration up to ten minutes and the amount of calories intake up to
450 calories compare to those who eat without any music playing as a background (Lluch, 2011).
Even though fast-tempo music tend to be one of the causes of overeating, playing slow-tempo
music doesn't mean that the result in amount of food consumption will be less. Because slow-tempo
music can slow down the process of eating which results in longer meal duration. Some studies
have confirmed that slow-tempo music is one of the tool to create a motive for the customers to
spend more time and money in the restaurants(McElrea and Standing, 1992). The more time spent
in the restaurant, the higher the bills will be. Hence, no matter what kind of music tempo or genre
played during the meal it will results in larger amount of food intake comparing to no background
music environment.

Music and Human's Brain

Music is a stimulant in environment that play a part in enhancing the motivation to eat. That's the
reason why music is one of the treatments for eating disorder patients. Human's brain can react to
music the way it reacts to drugs like Cocaine (Jha, 2011). Music trigger human's brain to release a
chemical called dopamine which is the same chemical that released as when taking drugs. Once
dopamine is released, the food tend to be more appealing and delicious. In another word, music can
make whatever people is doing more enjoyable. Surprisingly, the experiment conducted has shown
that music can stimulate the brain to release dopamine almost as much as drugs. In that way, music
is capable of enhancing the appetite and appreciation of the meal.

In fine dining, people usually order course by course. For the three courses meal, they will

start of with appetizer, followed by main course, and finished the meal with dessert. The time gap
between each course is given to the patrons to decide what to order next. That is where music play a
part. While waiting for their appetizer to arrive at the table, they might start a conversation with
other people in the table, without knowing that music slowly trigger their mood and draw them into
the atmosphere. Once the appetizers have been served, the same time as when their brain start to
release dopamine, making the appetizer look so appealing and taste even better. After they're done
with the appetizer, they perused through the menu again, thinking what should they have for main
course then decided to order a ribeye steak. Right at that moment music play a trick on them over
and over again. The same goes for beverages, people might end up spent more time than they
expected, especially when there're alcohol drinks to keep them company. Therefore, it won't be a
surprise if there's a significant number of the increase in food and beverages consumption and time
spent in the restaurant.

Conclusion

It is clear, therefore, that music not only is one of the entertainment forms but also one of the factors
behind the success in many restaurant businesses. Music has been used as a tool to manipulate the
amount of food and beverages consumption in the restaurants, and also a time spent as well. Based
on the theories, studies, and experiments conducted, music has a significant effect on human's
bodies both mentally and physically. Human's heart rate can be affected by different tempo of
music. Fast-tempo music can increase heart rate ,and slow-tempo music can decrease heart rate. It
also goes the same with eating behavior, fast-tempo music can result is the increase of the eating
pace, which has a high probability of overeating. On the other hand, slow-tempo music slow down
the process of eating, which result in a longer meal duration and increase in food and beverages
consumption.

Moreover, music stimulates a chemical called dopamine to release from human's brain. Once
this particular chemical has been released, the food and drinks tend to look more appealing, and
taste more delicious as well. From all the researches and studies, they have proved the statement
made in the beginning of the essay; music increase food and beverages consumption and time spent
in restaurants.

References

North, Adrian C., Amber Shilcock, and David J. Hargreaves. "The Effect of
Musical Style on Restaurant Customers' Spending." Environment & Behavior,
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Roballey, Thomas C., Colleen Mcgreevy, Richard R. Rongo, Michelle L.
Schwantes, Peter J. Steger, Marie A. Wininger, and Elizabeth B. Gardner. "The
Effect of Music on Eating Behavior." Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 1985,
221-22.
Paul J. Bach, James M. Schaefer. "The Tempo of Country Music and the Rate of Drinking in Bars."
Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. 1979, 40.11
Milliman, Ronald E. "Using Background Music to Affect the Behavior of Supermarket Shoppers."
Journal of Marketing, 1982, 86.
Stroebele, Nanette, and John M. De Castro. "Listening To Music While Eating Is Related To
Increases In People's Food Intake And Meal Duration." Appetite, 2006, 285-89.
Wilson, S. "The Effect Of Music On Perceived Atmosphere And Purchase Intentions In A
Restaurant." Psychology of Music, 2003, 93-112.
Leblanc, Albert, Rudolf E. Radocy, and J. David Boyle. "Psychological Foundations of Musical
Behavior." Music Educators Journal, 1997, 67.
Lluch, Alex A. Eating Smart and Losing Weight Made Easy. San Diego, California: WS Publishing
Group, 2011.
Mcelrea, Heather, and Lionel Standing. "Fast Music Causes Fast Drinking." Perceptual And Motor
Skills, 1992, 362.
Jha, Alok. "Favourite Music Evokes Same Feelings as Good Food or Drugs." The Guardian.
January 9, 2011. Accessed November 12, 2014.