The Effect of Music on Task PerformanceSummaryTo determine whether music affected task performance and whether an experimental technique was used, variables were manipulated and data recorded. The objective of this study was to determine whether different styles of music affected task performance. This was a new experiment, loosely based on previous research dating back to the 19th century. The method involved three groups of participants performing a test (solving thirty anagrams). One group had fast music playing in the background, another had slow music, and the third performed it silently. Participants were primarily selected via a systematic sample, but this would have been transformed into an opportunity sample if some participants had not shown up. It was hypothesized that there would be significant differences between a) fast and slow music, b) fast and no music, and c) slow music. and no music. A two-tailed Mann-Whitney U test at a significance level of p = 0.05 revealed that all three alternative hypotheses were accepted and the null hypotheses rejected. The data collected showed that playing music slowly in the background improved task performance compared to performing it silently, while fast music deteriorated performance. The implications of this study, its limitations, and suggestions for follow-up studies will be discussed in more detail. ContentIntroductionSocial influence describes how other people around us can influence our actions. This is particularly relevant in situations where groups of people complete a task together, as Triplett discovered in one of the...... middle of article...... Observed value of U = 30 Critical value of U = 23 at a significance level of p? 0.05 and a two-tailed test. Therefore, as 30 > 23, the null hypothesis is rejected. Appendix VI - Mann Whitney U test for hypothesis two U = 10 x 10 + 10 (10 + 1)2 - 111.5 = 43.5 U = 43.5 U' = 10 x 10 - 43.5 = 56.5 U' = 56.5 Observed value of U = 43.5 Critical value of U = 23 at a significance level of p? 0.05 and a two-tailed test. Therefore, as 43.5 > 23, the null hypothesis is rejected. Appendix VII - Mann Whitney U test for the third hypothesis U = 10 x 10 + 10 (10 + 1)2 - 115.5 = 39.5 U = 39.5 U' = 10 x 10 - 39.5 = 60 .5 U' = 60.5 Observed value of U = 39.5 Critical value of U = 23 at a significance level of p? 0.05 and a two-tailed test. Therefore, as 39.5 > 23, the null hypothesis is rejected.