Research

Exploring How Music Influences Hedonic Response to, Elaboration on, and Recall of Scientific Information about Gene-Edited Pigs

Authors

• • Dennis Baffour-Awuah db27687@uga.edu Email Dennis Baffour-Awuah. (compose email, opens in email app.)
  • University of Georgia
• • Alexa J Lamm Alexa J Lamm ORCID profile. (opens in new tab)
  • University of Georgia
• • Allison Ruth Byrd
  • University of Georgia
• • Kevan W Lamm
  • University of Georgia
• • Catherine Sanders
  • North Carolina State University
• • Shuyang Qu
  • Iowa State University
• • Fally Masambuka-Kanchewa
  • Iowa State University
• • Michael Retallick
  • Iowa State University

Abstract

Public understanding of emerging scientific innovations can be influenced by ethical, emotional, and cultural concerns, which complicate how people interpret the benefits of science. Appealing to the emotional as well as logical side of decision-making may assist when communicating about innovations. The use of gene editing in agriculture is an example of complex science that may be contentious, including the recently developed Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS)-resistant pig. Music has been shown to garner attention as a form of hedonic stimuli and may assist in emotionally connecting someone to scientific information. The purpose of this study was to explore how background audio could influence hedonic response to, elaboration on, and recall of scientific information about the PRRS-resistant pig on Instagram. Using an experimental design, 1,000 U.S. respondents were randomly assigned to view an Instagram-style reel accompanied by one of five audio treatments: rap music, pop music, country music, AI-generated voiceover, or no sound. Hedonic response, elaboration, and recall were measured using validated scales and analyzed using one-way ANOVAs and Tukey's post hoc tests. Results indicated country and pop music produced the highest hedonic responses, and the AI-generated voiceover and country music resulted in the highest elaboration. Rap music led to the highest recall. The findings imply music has the potential to influence communication in digital settings. Agricultural communicators seeking to improve public engagement with scientific innovations, especially on social media, can include specific background audio with their messages to elicit hedonic response, increase elaboration, and enhance recall.

Keywords: gene editing, music, PRRS-resistant pigs, hedonics, elaboration

How to Cite: Baffour-Awuah, D. , Lamm, A. J. , Byrd, A. R. , Lamm, K. W. , Sanders, C. , Qu, S. , Masambuka-Kanchewa, F. & Retallick, M. (2026) “Exploring How Music Influences Hedonic Response to, Elaboration on, and Recall of Scientific Information about Gene-Edited Pigs”, Journal of Applied Communications. 110(2). doi: https://doi.org/10.4148/jac.20877