Effects of listening to music on affective and cognitive disorders in institutionalized elderly people

• Grant number: 25/07677-3
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: May 01, 2026
• End date: April 30, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Psychological Treatment and Prevention
• Principal Investigator: Edvaldo Soares
• Grantee: Edvaldo Soares
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia e Ciências (FFC). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Marília. Marília , SP, Brazil
• City of the host institution: Marília
• Associated researchers: Luã Carlos Valle Dantas

Abstract

This project aims to evaluate, in institutionalized older adults, the effects of a structured controlled music-listening intervention on perceived loneliness, depression, anxiety, focused attention, immediate memory, remote memory, and frailty. We will conduct a longitudinal, prospective, randomized, single-blind clinical trial with a crossover design involving 128 participants allocated to an intervention group (IG) and an active control group (CG). In Phase I, the IG will attend 12 musical stimulation sessions, whereas the CG will participate in structured non-musical activities with identical duration and frequency. After a four-week washout period, the groups will switch conditions (Phase II), allowing intra- and inter-individual comparisons, reduced between-subject variability, increased statistical power, and assessment of possible residual effects. Validated instruments will be used to measure perceived loneliness (UCLA), depressive symptoms (GDS-30), anxiety (HAM-A), focused attention (AC), immediate and remote memory (MMSE), and frailty (EFS). Statistical analyses will follow the intention-to-treat principle using linear mixed-effects models for repeated measures, supplemented by nonparametric tests and effect size estimates. We expect the music-listening intervention to significantly reduce perceived loneliness - the study's central variable and an independent predictor of emotional distress, cognitive decline, and frailty - and to generate affective and cognitive benefits beyond those of the active control condition, with an estimated therapeutic efficacy of approximately 75%. The findings may support the development of low-cost, non-pharmacological strategies for improving mental, cognitive, and functional well-being among institutionalized older adults, informing future public policies on aging. (AU)