Stop the Music!!! |

Oh, gracious! I thought it was just me. But, now I’m backed by science!

You see, I always thought it was just because I was Jewish that my nerves were on edge with the incessant Christmas music playing everywhere comes the day after Thanksgiving (or even earlier). I was sure it was because when I grew up in Forest City, where all the neighbors’ homes had speakers blaring out songs that I really never learned. Or, when I walked into a store, only to be greeted not by a salesperson, but by the sounds of a Christmas Carol or ditty. And, no, I didn’t care if the songs were written by Jewish folks or not.

It turns out that hearing these same songs over and over and over (I’ll stop here) again really does upset our psyches. Oh, sure, for most of you, the first time or two (maybe five) you hear a song, it sets you up in the “Christmas spirit”.

But, if we can believe Consumers’ Union (the folks that publish Consumer Reports, the magazine that provides ratings on cars, televisions, and other consumer goods), some 23 percent of Americans consider these seasonal songs to be dreadful. (Of course, 68% of us hate the crowds and long lines that persist this time of year. Which may explain why the music gets so annoying. We’re stuck in line and forced to hear the same song over and over (yes, I’ll stop here).

Drs. Victoria Williamson, SR Jilka, J Fry, S Finkel, D Mullensiefen, and L. Stewart study the psychology of music- earworms , Christmas music, etc. They have defined that our tolerance for music compositions is governed by the exposure effect. Basically, our desire (or hatred) of a song involves an inverted U shape. (They also determined that 90% of us develop an earworm at least once a week. I’m glad I’m part of that 10%!)

The mere-exposure effect explains that, for things with which we are familiar, we develop a preference. Which is why this principle is also known as the familiarity principle. That inverted U shape explains that the more we hear holiday music, the more annoyance, boredom, or stress we encounter. And, if we are already stressed by work or other factors, the music simply makes matters worse. That latter finding is the conclusion of Dr. Linda Blair, a clinical psychologist.

Her data shows that constant blaring of Christmas music- instead of putting and keeping us in the holiday spirit- reminds us that we have to buy presents, organize parties and celebrations, and see a bunch of people we really don’t like.

That may be true for most folks- but it doesn’t cover why I don’t like the music.

But, here are two songs I do like to hear. Just not incessantly.