Physiological Orienting Responses to Musical and Complex Sounds

Twenty-two healthy young male participants had their heart rate changes measured in response to 16 test sounds during a simulated daily-life experiment. The dataset contains results from a study by Mako Katagiri, published on figshare in April 2026, analyzing the reproducibility of orienting responses for alarm and pre-signal sound selection. Physiological data includes calculated RR interval differences and normalized orienting response strength for sounds spanning frequencies from 130.8 Hz to 1661.4 Hz.

Use Cases

• Identify alarm signals by analyzing positive orienting response (OR) values for complex sounds like C6 + G#6.
• Select calming pre-signals by examining negative OR values for musical sounds like C3 + E3.
• Model the relationship between sound frequency (130.8 Hz to 1661.4 Hz) and the strength of the physiological orienting response.
• Assess the reproducibility of heart rate-based attention metrics by comparing OR results across the 11 sounds with reproducible responses.
• Correlate the change in mean RR interval over five beats with sound type (musical vs. complex) and specific note intervals.

Strengths

• Data derived from a controlled experiment with 22 participants in a simulated daily-life environment.
• Includes 16 distinct test sounds with precise frequency ranges and sound type classifications.
• Uses a specific, objective physiological metric (normalized RR interval difference) to quantify orienting response.

Limitations

• Small sample size of 22 participants, all healthy young males, limiting demographic generalizability.
• The dataset is very small (55.6 KB), indicating limited scope, likely containing summary results rather than raw trial data.
• Temporal coverage is limited to specific experimental sessions, not longitudinal or real-world continuous monitoring.

Provenance

Source

Mako Katagiri via figshare.

Collection Method

Experimental data collected from participants during a three-day, two-night stay, with heart rate measured before and after sound presentation.

Time Range

Experimental period, specific dates unknown.

Freshness

Last updated in April 2026.