Overlapping Effects of Music Training on Multisensory and Emotion Processing: A Systematic Review

Evidence suggests musicians have enhanced audio-visual and emotion recognition abilities. However, these two lines of research have generally been separated in the literature, despite these processes being similarly altered in certain populations (e.g., autism, schizophrenia). The current systematic review presents a comprehensive picture of the effect of music training on behavioural and neural changes in audio-visual and emotion recognition processes, to better understand where they might overlap or share any similarities. It additionally assessed the impact of different music training factors (i.e., training onset, length, type of musical instrument and the type of research task). Finally, this review aimed to produce a clearer understanding of whether the effects of music training extend beyond the music and sound domain. Following PRISMA guidelines, 64 papers were identified, of which 41 examined audio-visual processing, 20 investigated emotion processing, and three examined both processes. The available evidence revealed a consistent musician advantage for some audio-visual processes (e.g., audio-visual temporal correspondence), with some evidence that this advantage extended beyond the music domain. Consistent musician advantages were also found for processing basic emotions from speech prosody, with some evidence that this extended to complex emotions. A share brain network for these effects was identified comprising the anterior cingulate cortex and superior frontal gyrus. Together, our findings suggest that audio-visual and emotion recognition processes share a number of similarities in how music training can shape them. Further research should directly explore the combined effect of music training on multisensory and emotion recognition to inform effective music interventions aimed at enhancing these processes.