Vigor Rises With Negative Input, While Anger And Confusion Increase With Positive Input During Walking

Auditory input, such as music or ambient sounds, can influence mood and motivation. Positive auditory input is often assumed to always enhance mood, while negative input is thought to decrease it; yet little research examines their impact during real-world physical activity. PURPOSE: To investigate how various auditory inputs (positive (P), negative (N), self-selected music (M), and silence(S)) influence mood states during a 30-minute self-paced walk. METHODS: A randomized controlled crossover design was used with 24 healthy, active adults (Mage = 23.04, SD = 4.2; 9males), each completing four 30-minute walking sessions under different auditory conditions:positive input, negative input, self-selected music, and silence. Mood states (six POMS-SFsubscales, .75 > α > .90) were measured every 5 minutes. A 4-treatment x 7-time RM-ANOVA was used to assess changes in moods and post-hoc paired T-Tests and ANOVAs using Bonferroni corrections were used where appropriate. RESULTS: Significant Time x Treatment interactions and post-hoc directionality of change: A) POMS Vigor: F (18, 342) = 2.46, p = .001, η2p = .012; S, N = increase, M = decrease, P = no change; B) POMS Fatigue: F (18, 342) = 1.94, p = .012, η2p = .013; N, S = decrease, M, P = no change ; C) POMS Depression: F (18, 342) = 1.35, p = .015, η2p = .017; S = decrease, P, N = no change, M = increase; D) POMS Anger: F(18, 342) = 2.20, p = .004, η2p = .040; M = increase, P, N, S = no change E) POMS Tension: F (18, 342) = 1.86, p = .018, η2p = .018; S, N = decrease, P, M = increase; and F) POMS Confusion: F (18, 342) = 2.38, p = .001, η2p = .018; M, P = increase, N, S = decrease. CONCLUSION: Auditory input significantly impacts mood during walking, with counterintuitive findings, such as heightened vigor during negative input and increased anger during music condition. These results challenge existing assumptions and suggest that positive auditory stimuli may not universally enhance mood during exercise, underscoring the value of personalized auditory strategies for optimal mood regulation. Future research should explore individual variability in mood responses to auditory input during self-paced walk.