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Song Stuck in Your Head? You're Not Alone
Reuters ^ | Monday, Feb 24, 2003 | Alison McCook

Posted on 02/24/2003 8:26:14 PM PST by InShanghai

 
Song Stuck in Your Head? You're Not Alone
By Alison McCook

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The vast majority of people say they have been mentally tortured at one point in their lives by a song that keeps repeating itself over and over in their heads.

And new research shows that people most frequently plagued by this phenomenon are those with slightly neurotic tendencies , and people who enjoy and listen to music often.

These mental broken records are also more likely to play the first or last song we hear in different situations, such as the first song that comes on in the morning alarm, or the last song playing before we turn off the car, study findings show.

Songs that topped the list as being most likely to stick around in someone's head included the Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out?" and the Chili's restaurant jingle about Baby Back Ribs.

But the number one song rated most likely to cause this phenomenon, referred to as an "earworm" in Germany, is "other"--indicating that many different songs can become stuck in our heads.

"Just about anything can get stuck in people's heads," study author Dr. James Kellaris of the University of Cincinnati told Reuters Health.

"We each have our personal demonic tunes that get stuck in our heads, I guess," he added.

Kellaris presented results from his current study on Saturday at the Society for Consumer Psychology Winter Conference in New Orleans.

Kellaris's previous research into the phenomenon of earworms revealed that "sticky" songs are those that are relatively simple, repetitive, and contain an element that surprises the listener. This incongruous element can be an interrupted pattern, or something that violates expectations of what comes next.

During the current study, Kellaris distributed surveys to 559 people aged 18 to 49 asking them about their personalities, how often tunes got stuck in their heads, how long the episodes lasted, and when the phenomenon was most likely to happen.

Ninety-eight percent of respondents said they had experienced stuck songs. Most said the episodes occurred "frequently," and lasted an average of a few hours.

Songs with lyrics were most often the culprits, a trend that Kellaris said is not surprising. Often what gets sticky is not just a tune, but also lyrics, a trend he calls "stupid lyrics syndrome." Combining a tune and lyrics ups the chance of song snippets staying with the listener for hours, he said.

Episodes of earworms also tend to strike people with neurotic tendencies more often. These people are not seriously neurotic, Kellaris said, but may simply be more prone to worrying and anxiety, and may have neurotic habits like biting pencils or tapping fingernails.

Women were more likely than men to report feeling annoyed, frustrated, or irritated about having songs stuck in their heads--a trend Kellaris said he is hard pressed to explain.

In terms of how to protect yourself from earworms, Kellaris recommended that people not worry about a stuck song as soon as it appears, and perhaps avoid listening to music for a spell if it becomes too sticky.

Strategies people report using to rid themselves of stuck tunes involved trying to listen to something else, distracting themselves with another activity, and trying to erase the repetition of one song snippet by singing the song all the way through.

"If they can't remember the lyrics, sometimes it helps for them to sing through the entire song, and then it will go away," Kellaris said.

Kellaris said he has also heard a "folkloric" recommendation of chewing on cinnamon sticks to rid the brain of a sticky song.

"Some people swear that will unstick a stuck tune," he said.



TOPICS: Extended News; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: greatthreads; lyricalneurosis; music; songs
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To: speedy
And the sign said, long-haired freaky people, need not apply...
61 posted on 02/24/2003 9:07:33 PM PST by Interesting Times
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To: Axenolith
In a blizzard he was lost.....
62 posted on 02/24/2003 9:07:56 PM PST by speedy
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To: Interesting Times
He was on his way home from Candletop
Been two weeks gone and he thought he'd stop
At William's and have him a drink 'fore he went home to her . . .
63 posted on 02/24/2003 9:08:17 PM PST by Charles Henrickson
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To: Charles Henrickson
Oh, I HATE that song!!!
64 posted on 02/24/2003 9:09:09 PM PST by T Minus Four
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To: Interesting Times
AHHHHH! REALITY ALERT!
65 posted on 02/24/2003 9:09:52 PM PST by InShanghai (Saddam will eat pork!)
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To: speedy
It never rains in California . . .
66 posted on 02/24/2003 9:10:01 PM PST by Charles Henrickson
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To: Charles Henrickson
Yeesh. Okay, how about:

Really love your peaches, wanna shake your tree...

67 posted on 02/24/2003 9:10:37 PM PST by Interesting Times
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To: Interesting Times
So I put my hair up under my hat...

I had to play along on that one, I own a sign company.

68 posted on 02/24/2003 9:11:05 PM PST by abner (Cruise the Caribe with FReepers! FRN Network Cruise)
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To: T Minus Four
"Twice on the pipes, if the answer is no" Actually, from that same era, I used to date a girl who loved Bread and forced me to go to several concerts -- "And one by one the stars would all go out -- and you and I would simply fly awaaaay" Sniff sniff. O sweet youth barf.
69 posted on 02/24/2003 9:11:25 PM PST by speedy
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To: T Minus Four
Alone again. Naturally.
70 posted on 02/24/2003 9:12:31 PM PST by Charles Henrickson
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To: abner
...so I took off my hat and said "imagine that" (huh!) ...me, workin' for you...
71 posted on 02/24/2003 9:12:41 PM PST by Interesting Times
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To: speedy
Gag.. Who did that diary under the tree one? The all time world's sappiest song.
72 posted on 02/24/2003 9:12:47 PM PST by T Minus Four
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To: Charles Henrickson
"Sing -- sing a song -- sing it loud -- sing it strong"
73 posted on 02/24/2003 9:13:00 PM PST by speedy
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To: InShanghai
"You'll wonder where the yellow went, when you brush your teeth with Pepsident!"

AAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!

74 posted on 02/24/2003 9:14:14 PM PST by Cold Heat
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To: hometoroost
He's hearing "Bombs Over Baghdad"

Or he's hearing Bush singing, "I won't back down."

75 posted on 02/24/2003 9:14:18 PM PST by gg188
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To: InShanghai
Jefferson Starship

Precious love I'll give to you
blue as the sky and deep in the eyes of a love so true
beautiful face you make me feel
lite on the stairs and lost in the air of a love so real

and you can count on me you can count on my love
you can count on me you can count on my love
to see you through

76 posted on 02/24/2003 9:14:28 PM PST by shattered
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To: Interesting Times
Signs, signs everywhere a sign....
77 posted on 02/24/2003 9:14:40 PM PST by abner (Cruise the Caribe with FReepers! FRN Network Cruise)
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To: T Minus Four
Yep, that was Bread -- I had to see it LIVE "And I wish for her his wife all the sweet things they can find"
78 posted on 02/24/2003 9:14:41 PM PST by speedy
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To: abner
Do this, don't do that -- can't you read the signs?
79 posted on 02/24/2003 9:15:54 PM PST by speedy
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To: Charles Henrickson
Ventura Highway, in the su-un-shine.
Where the days are longer, the nights are stronger than moo-oon-shine.
You're gonna go, I know-oh-oh. oh-oh-oh-oh. oh-oh. oh-oh-oh-oh...
80 posted on 02/24/2003 9:16:05 PM PST by Interesting Times
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