Using high‐preference and low‐preference music in a synchronous reinforcement treadmill preparation: A further extension
Music tied to each step can reward or relieve, either way making adults walk faster.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Adults without disabilities walked on a treadmill.
Music played in perfect step with each footfall.
Some people heard songs they loved. Others heard songs they disliked.
The team asked: can both kinds of music make people walk faster?
What they found
Both groups sped up. Heart rates rose too.
Liked music worked as a reward. Disliked music also worked by ending the unpleasant song.
Either way, people walked faster than when no music played.
How this fits with other research
Baruni et al. (2025) ran the same setup and saw the same gain with liked music.
Walker et al. (2026) went further. They set speed targets and still got faster walking.
Fine et al. (2005) and Chang et al. (2016) show the idea helps outside the lab. They used favorite toys or videos to boost steps for people with disabilities using walkers.
Together the papers say: any clear contingency—loved song, hated song, or toy—can fuel more walking across many populations.
Why it matters
You now have two cheap levers: give a favorite song or take away an annoying one. Both can add speed to treadmill work or hallway walks. Try pairing each step with a beat the client cares about. Watch the pace rise without extra prompts.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
We conducted a series of studies on the effects of synchronous reinforcement. Study 1 presented 30 participants with their high-preference (HP) music, identified via a conjugate assessment, for walking on a treadmill during three synchronous reinforcement (SYNC) components. The results indicated that HP music produced schedule control of walking speed for 20 participants (66.7%). In addition, 80% of the participants who displayed schedule control also displayed variable walking speeds when music was withheld. Study 2 extended Study 1 by providing 30 new participants with their low-preference (LP) music, again using the same conjugate assessment, for walking on a treadmill during the same three SYNC components. The results indicated that LP music produced schedule control of walking to (a) avoid music for 13 participants (43.33%) and (b) access music for two participants (6.67%). Study 3 compared group results across components for HP and LP participants from Studies 1 and 2, respectively. The results indicated that that the HP group walked significantly faster than the LP group during three components; however, heart rates did not differ statistically between the two groups for any component. The results across the studies indicate that both positive and negative synchronous reinforcement with music increased the walking speeds and heart rates of participants.
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 2025 · doi:10.1002/jeab.70026