Messed!Up
Consumer psychologist and researcher Patrick Fagan, Associate Lecturer at Goldsmith’s University, and music venue owner O2 recently carried out a psychometric study comparing the heart rate of volunteers walking with their dogs, participating in yoga sessions or going to a concert – all of which are known stress-busters. The results show those who attended the live concert saw their mood boosted by 21 percent, and by contrast, the volunteers who took part in a 20-minute yoga session increased their wellbeing by just 10 percent. And those who walked their dog saw only a seven percent hike in their happiness.
Fagan comments “Our research showcases the profound impact concerts have on feelings of health, happiness and wellbeing – with fortnightly or regular attendance being the key […] Combining all of our findings with O2’s research, we arrive at a prescription for a concert a fortnight which could pave the way for almost a decade more years of life“.
Additional scholarly research found high levels of wellbeing are linked with a lifespan increase of on average nine years, suggesting that seeing a concert once every two weeks could lengthen the average lifespan by almost a decade. The research showed those who attend live concerts once a fortnight or more were the most likely to score their personal happiness, contentment, productivity and self-esteem at 10/10.
Well then, quit the gym, kick out the dog and spend the money on gigs instead – science told you so! *
*A small note: the report doesn’t consider the wellbeing of gig goers drinking to much beer. It might be obvious to some readers that having a few beers every gig night, in particular when you attend 3-4 gigs a week, may even out the wellbeing effect.
Photo: © Martin Wilson
