The Impact of Background Music on Flow, Work Engagement and Task Performance: A Randomized Controlled Study

The widespread adoption of background music in workplaces contrasts with the inconsistent empirical evidence regarding its cognitive effects, particularly concerning how music types influence the sequential pathway from flow states to work engagement and task performance. While prior research identifies flow and engagement as potential mediators, theoretical conflicts persist regarding their temporal dynamics and susceptibility to auditory habituation. This study tested three hypotheses: (1) music type indirectly affects performance through flow-engagement mediation, (2) high-arousal music impairs while structured compositions (e.g., Mozart's K448) enhance this pathway, and (3) repeated exposure diminishes music's efficacy. A two-phase longitudinal experiment with 428 Chinese undergraduates employed structural equation modeling (SEM) to analyze data from randomized groups (control, high-arousal, low-arousal, and Mozart K448), completing Backward Digit Span tasks under controlled auditory conditions. The results confirmed Mozart K448's superior immediate mediation effect (β = 0.118, 95% CI [0.072, 0.181]) compared to high-arousal music's detrimental impact (β = -0.112, 95% CI [-0.182, -0.056]), with flow fully mediating engagement's influence on performance. A longitudinal analysis revealed a 53% attenuation in Mozart's flow-enhancing effect after a 30-day familiarization (B = 0.150 vs. baseline 0.321), though residual benefits persisted. These findings reconcile the cognitive tuning and arousal-mood hypotheses by proposing a hybrid model where music initially operates through a novelty-driven dopamine release before transitioning to schema-based cognitive priming. Practically, the results advocate tiered auditory strategies: deploying structured music during skill acquisition phases while rotating selections to counter habituation. The study highlights the cultural specificity in auditory processing, challenging universal prescriptions and underscoring the need for localized music policies. By integrating flow theory with neurocognitive habituation models, this research advances evidence-based guidelines for optimizing workplace auditory environments.