Romantic Music Makes Young Women More Likely to Say Yes

After listening to a love song, a young woman is almost 30% more likely to say yes when asked out on a date by a new acquaintance.

Researchers in France (where else?) investigated the effect of romantic music on a young woman’s receptiveness to a request for a date by having a young man rated as “average” in appearance ask women out. The women who were asked out after having heard a romantic song were far more likely to give out their phone numbers than the young women who had listened to a song that was not about love.

The subjects in the study were 87 single women between 18 and 20. The young women were led to believe they were participating in a study of food preferences. They spent time in a waiting room (where they heard the background music) before being brought to another room with the “average” guy to talk about two food products. When the experimenter left the couple alone, the young man would use a pre-determined pick up line.

If the background music the young woman heard in the waiting room was a romantic song (specifically, a French song whose title translates as “I’ll love you till I die”), the young man had much better chances of getting a phone number. Of those who heard the love ballad, 52% responded positively; only 28% gave their phone numbers if the song they had heard in the waiting room was a neutral one.

The researchers, all affiliated with French universities, note that their research is important not only because it might help us understand the psychology of courtship but also because it demonstrates that the influence of media is not limited to violence. Their research appeared this week in the journal Psychology of Music.

Although the study demonstrated a link between the romantic music and a positive response, the researchers say they don’t yet know exactly why. Possibly the music put them in a good mood, making them more responsive, or possibly it simply predisposed them to act romantically. If you’re looking for a date, though, the reason why hardly matters: Don’t underestimate the power of a sentimental song.