A new study published in Child Development on May 28, 2025, reveals that encouraging parents to sing to their infants can significantly improve the babies' mood. Researchers from multiple universities conducted a randomized controlled trial involving 110 caregiver-infant pairs to explore the impact of a music enrichment program.
The intervention group received a smartphone-based program to help them sing more often to their babies. Participants completed smartphone surveys to report on infant and parent mood, stress, sleep quality, and music use. The study found that increased infant-directed singing, particularly in soothing contexts, led to measurable improvements in infants' general mood.
The research suggests that simple, low-cost interventions like singing can positively impact health outcomes for both infants and caregivers. Singing is a universal practice and requires no special equipment or training. Researchers are now conducting follow-up studies to explore the long-term effects and compare singing with other interactive activities like reading.