Does Brain Research Support the Hope for Musical Transfer Effects?
Introduction: Divergent concepts of intelligence When talking about brain research and transfer effects in music we necessarily touch the issue of intelligence. For the hidden assumption (and the educational hope) beyond musical transfer effects very often is articulated in terms of if and how and to what extent music is apt to make individuals smarter. Therefore, I first would like to very briefly glance at the meanings of intelligence. Very often – or even mostly – intelligence is associated with cognitive and intellectual capacity. In a very broad sense Intelligence can be defined as the psychobiological potential to solve problems. However, there is a still ongoing debate on two conflicting theories: the global g-factor theory versus the theory of multiple intelligences. The question is whether intelligence can or must be seen as one global property corresponding to a hierarchical model with the g-factor on top that influences many domains, or whether it reflects a community of sep
