Music training RCTs show improved verbal working memory (backward digit span), but not visuospatial or forward-span tasks¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 2 studies · 2 reviewr2–r3·q2
Currency · newest study 2022 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q2 i? A 6-week harmonica training RCT showed a significant group × time interaction (p = 0.015) in digit span backward performance. → Rodriguez-Gomez DA and Talero-Gutiérrez C 2022
q2 i? Neither RCT observed improved performance in visuospatial WM or forward digit/word tasks. → Rodriguez-Gomez DA and Talero-Gutiérrez C 2022 (2)
Evidence¶
Rodriguez-Gomez DA and Talero-Gutiérrez C 2022¶
Rodriguez-Gomez DA and Talero-Gutiérrez C (2022) Effects of music training in executive function performance in children: A systematic review. Front. Psychol. 13:968144. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.968144
q2 · i? · review · r3
RCT allocating 40 Japanese school-age children to 6-week harmonica lessons (n = 20) or control (n = 20). The review reports "a significant group × time interaction ( p = 0.015) in the digit span backward (DSB) performance." Nie et al. (2022) similarly found DSB improvement (p < 0.001) after a year-long Kodály intervention.
"the results showed a significant group × time interaction ( p = 0.015) in the digit span backward (DSB) performance, suggesting an improved verbal working memory with harmonica training."
Rodriguez-Gomez DA and Talero-Gutiérrez C 2022 (2)¶
Rodriguez-Gomez DA and Talero-Gutiérrez C (2022) Effects of music training in executive function performance in children: A systematic review. Front. Psychol. 13:968144. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.968144
q2 · i? · review · r2
The review states that the Guo et al. (2018) and Nie et al. (2022) RCTs showed backward-span gains only: "Neither of these RCTs observed improved performance in visuospatial WM or forward digit/word tasks."
"Neither of these RCTs observed improved performance in visuospatial WM or forward digit/word tasks."
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- In adolescents, prior music training was associated with faster test completion times but no executive function performance differences
- No significant group difference in working memory as measured by the Digit Span Backward subtest
- Only one identified study found improved visuospatial working memory after music training — related
- Verbal working memory shows non-linear growth from ages 3–19, with the most rapid growth during childhood and a brief accelerated period during early adolescence — related
- When PSID-CDS data are restricted to ages 6–11, backward digit span growth is best characterized by a quadratic (not cubic) function — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
music-training-verbal-working-memory-backward-span |
title |
Music training RCTs show improved verbal working memory (backward digit span), but not visuospatial or forward-span tasks |
description |
Music training RCTs show improved verbal working memory (backward digit span), but not visuospatial or forward-span tasks |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
weak |
newest_evidence |
2022 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-16 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
2 — rodriguez-gomez-da-and-talero-gutiérrez-c-2022, rodriguez-gomez-da-and-talero-gutiérrez-c-2022-2 |
Frontmatter is the page's machine-readable record — see the Schema & Guide.