a temporary increase in the affect or performance of research participants on tasks involving spatial–temporal reasoning after listening to the music of Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791). More generally, the term refers to the possibility that listening to certain types of music enhances inherent cognitive functioning. Apart from the neurological research on this effect, some experts propose an arousal theory perspective, such that listening to music heightens emotional levels that correspond to higher performance on intelligence tests. The notion of the Mozart effect has entered into popular culture to carry the as-yet-unsupported suggestion that early childhood exposure to classical music benefits mental development or intelligence.