The Effect of Background Music Tempo on Vocabulary Acquisition

Whether background music hinders or facilitates second language (L2) processing and acquisition has been a subject of considerable interest. Building on this line of research, the present study investigated how the tempo of background music influences L2 vocabulary acquisition. A total of 139 Korean middle school students were randomly assigned to one of three groups: slow tempo (60 bpm), fast tempo (160 bpm), or a control group (no music). A Mozart sonata served as the background music in both tempo conditions. Participants were tasked with memorizing 16 target words, evenly divided into eight concrete nouns and eight abstract nouns. Vocabulary acquisition was assessed immediately after the memorization task using two tests that measured knowledge of both word form and meaning. The results revealed no significant differences in test performance among the three groups. These findings suggest that background music, regardless of tempo, neither facilitates nor disrupts L2 vocabulary acquisition. As the first study to specifically examine the influence of background music tempo on L2 vocabulary learning, this research offers valuable educational implications and contributes to the current L2 acquisition literature.