SynthesisFrontiers in psychology2022
Effects of music training in executive function performance in children: A systematic review.
Synthesis in Frontiers in psychology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 60 citations in OpenAlex.
- How is musical expertise related to executive functions? A systematic review and meta-analysis.Psychonomic bulletin & review · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of music therapy for children with autism spectrum disorder: meta-analysis and potential biological mechanisms.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Can music activity training improve self-control among preschool children? Evidence from an 8-week intervention experiment.BMC psychology · 2026Trial
- Can you beat the music? Validation of a gamified rhythmic training in children with ADHD.Behavior research methods · 2025Trial
- Self-directed music play to improve executive function in young children using NIRS.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- Musical training is associated with cognitive outcomes and white matter microstructure in middle childhood.Developmental cognitive neuroscience · 2026Article
- Early Childhood Movement- and Arts-Based Experiences and Executive Functions: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Effects of a Brief Music-Movement Active Break on Executive Functions, Mathematics, and Engagement in Preschool Children.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Musical Training Amplifies Food Cue-Related Interference in Working Memory.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Moving, Seeing, Hearing, Smelling and Tasting: How Sensory-Motor Experiences Shape Early Cognitive Development.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- From Finger Taps to Footsteps: Gait as a Model for Investigating and Training Rhythmic Abilities.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2026Review
- Cognitive Enhancement Through Music Education: Affective Pathways to Executive Function Improvement in Musicians.Brain sciences · 2026Article
- Music listening patterns and their associations with mood regulation, emotional processing, and cognitive performance: an intensive longitudinal questionnaire study.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Extracurricular activities as a moderator of the association between screen time and executive functions in children.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Article
- Music and physical activity in early childhood: the ambiguous role of the at-home context and extracurricular activities.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Interindividual differences in auditory processing moderate the effect of auditory-motor coupling on paired-associate learning.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Article
- Chess classes and executive function skills in 5-6 years old children: evidence from cross-sectional study.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Effect of music therapy on children with autism spectrum disorders in the Chinese population: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Music training has traditionally been a fundamental component of children's education across several cultures. Moreover, music training has been hypothesized to enhance the development of executive functions and improve executive performance in children. In this systematic review, we analyze the available evidence of the effects of music training on executive function performance, evaluated using validated neuropsychologic batteries and classic tasks. To achieve this objective, we performed a systematic search in three databases (PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, and Scopus) and selected case-control or intervention studies conducted on children with neurotypical development. We analyzed 29 studies that met the inclusion criteria and observed significant heterogeneity among the music interventions and methods for assessing executive functions. The review of the available literature suggests a beneficial effect of music training in core executive function performance, primarily in inhibitory control, and to a lesser extent, in working memory and cognitive flexibility.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.