Psychophysiological healing effects of mechanical massage and imagery music listening

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate the psychophysiological healing effect and physiological effects of mechanical massage using a massage chair and listening to imagery music reminiscent of nature or urban places. All participants received three different treatments, including sitting on the massage chair and resting for 3 minutes, receiving massage from the chair, and receiving massage while listening to imagery music. The time interval between each treatment was a minimum of 1 week. Not only psychological responses, including anxiety, stress, and depression, were measured using questionnaire scales before and after each treatment but also physiological responses were measured using Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and electroencephalogram (EEG). Although all treatments were designed to psychophysiologically relax the participants, they showed significantly more positive responses when receiving massage with imagery music compared to other treatments. The results of this study may suggest the potential application of massage and guided imagery music for psychophysiological restoration and could serve as foundational data for developing content for physical healing in individuals.