Entrainment Between Physiological and Musical Rhythms and Promotion of Well-Being: Perspectives for Education and Rehabilitation

Entrainment at physiological level, is defined as the synchronization of an organism’s rhythms with internal activity or external stimuli, and it is considered as relevant biological mechanisms associated to cognitive, motor, and affective functioning (Carlson et al., 2019; Clayton, 2012; Colling et al., 2017; Goswami, 2022; Thaut, 2015). Research demonstrates a strong relationship between entrainment, auditory perception, and motor synchronization (Mathias et al., 2020). Moreover, the motor system's adaptation to auditory cues highlights the relevance of rhythm-based interventions in rehabilitation (Janzen et al., 2022). Early models, such as Fries's Communication Through Coherence (2015), and Hahn et al. (2014) Communication Through Resonance, highlight the role of entrainment in neural communication, while evidence indicates that temporal synchronization aids in the attribution of meaning to sensory information (Garrod & Pickering, 2004). This research also draws on other relevant theoretical frameworks, including Predictive Coding Theory (Spratling, 2016) which explains how cognitive functions operate through ongoing predictions about sensory input that are continuously updated, and Dynamic Attending Theory, which posits that attentional oscillations align with rhythmic sequences to facilitate sound processing (Jones, 1976). Additionally, we interpreted our findings within the wider spectrum of Embodied Cognition framework (Yankun, 2024), which suggests that cognitive processes are shaped by sensorimotor interactions, bodily states, and environmental context. Models indicate that interactions between the brain and the environment can be fundamentally rhythmic (Mathias et al., 2020). In this context, electroencephalography (EEG) technique, enables precise examination of neural entrainment. EEG studies interested in studying temporal processing often use event-related potentials (ERPs) such as the Mismatch Negativity (MMN), which reflects automatic neural responses to perceptual violations, and the N100, which is involved in attention allocation and temporal predictability (Zora et al., 2023). Entrainment can also be measured through sensorimotor synchronization tasks, which require individuals to align their movements rhythmically with a stimulus (Repp, 2005). In this regard research suggest that music-based training could improve rhythmic synchronization abilities (Janzen et al., 2022; Thaut et al., 2015). This doctoral thesis examined entrainment from three perspectives: a foundational review of physiological entrainment (Chapter One), an ERPs study on neural entrainment dynamics in auditory processing (Chapter Two), and an applied educational intervention by testing the impact of Dalcroze Eurhythmics pedagogical approach (Chapter Three). Chapter one consists of a review titled Physiological Entrainment: A Key Mind-Body Mechanism for Cognitive, Motor, and Affective Functioning, and Well-Being. This review focuses on Physiological Entrainment, examining alignment of human rhythms with external stimuli to support cognitive, motor, and affective functions and well-being. Within embodied cognition and predictive coding frameworks, this chapter proposes entrainment as a mind-body mechanism. Results of this review indicates the need for a unified framework for physiological entrainment phenomenon. Chapter two empirically investigates neural entrainment using EEG, through the event related potential analysis (ERPs), in a study titled Electrophysiological Correlates of Neural Entrainment Dynamics in Auditory Processing: An ERPs Study. Two experiments with healthy non-musician university students employed an auditory oddball task (AOT) to examine the perceptual (pitch) and temporal (rhythm) violations as key cognitive components of neural entrainment representation. First, behavioural data, such as accuracy and reaction time, were analysed as relevant parameters for detecting similar auditory violation levels (pitch vs rhythm). Second, EEG analysis focused on ERPs analysis components such as Mismatch Negativity (MMN: Fitzgerald & Todd, 2020) and N100 (Shen et al., 2020; Schwartze et al., 2013), exploring how the brain processes perceptual and temporal violations in auditory sequences. Results indicated that both pitch and rhythm violations yielded similar accuracy and reaction times, consistent with initial behavioural results. However, EEG data revealed that the brain prioritizes rhythm shifts over pitch changes, with stronger neural responses associated to rhythm violations. This enhanced sensitivity to rhythm suggests that the brain's attentional processes are more finely tuned to temporal predictability in auditory sequences, highlighting rhythm's essential role in organizing and processing auditory information. Chapter three examines motor entrainment, assessed through sensorimotor synchronization, and its relationship with psychophysiological well-being in an embodied music education setting, as explored in the study titled Promoting Well-being with Dalcroze Eurhythmics: Exploring Rhythmic Awareness. Dalcroze is a pedagogical music-based approach that integrates rhythm and movement to enhance coordination, kinesthetic awareness, and emotional expression, and has been shown to foster overall well-being (Juntunen, 2020; Sutela et al., 2016). In this study, we recruited a non-clinical sample of non-musician university students, divided into an experimental group which participated in Dalcroze training sessions and a control group which received no intervention. Measures included heart rate variability (HRV) as an objective indicator of physiological well-being, mindfulness traits, emotional intelligence, anxiety, stress, and depression as self-reported psychological well-being measures, and sensorimotor synchronization abilities as an index of motor synchronization. Results indicated that Dalcroze activities led to improvements in physiological and behavioural measures, although this did not align with participants’ subjective psychological evaluations. We suggested that the increased level of physiological well-being, reflected in greater heart rate variability (HRV), may have enhanced participants to focus on their emotional states, allowing them for a more efficient processing of personal negative experiences, which could explain higher states of anxiety. Correlation analysis also suggested that an increased ability to observe internal experiences without judgment - a core aspect of mindfulness - is associated with a decrease in the Synchronization Variation Index (which is calculated as the difference between post and pre inter-tapping value index), suggesting that improved interoceptive awareness is associated to a greater stability of partecipants in their sensorimotor synchronization after Dalcroze activities. Moreover, a regression model revealed that the trait of emotional well-being intelligence significantly contributed to the positive impact of Dalcroze activities in enhancing overall well-being. Together, the studies presented in this doctoral research aimed to provide a comprehensive analysis of entrainment’s implications across cognitive, motor, and affective domains, proposing rhythm-based interventions as a pedagogical approach to enhancing psychophysiological well-being. Thus, through an integrated theoretical, empirical, and applied methodology, these works explore the phenomenon of physiological entrainment as a fundamental mind-body mechanism, highlighting the role of embodied musical practices in supporting affective well-being.