Development of the Psychology of Music and its Contribution to Psychology

Music is a uniquely human trait and is a foundational human activity. This chapter is about the psychology of music. It starts with the history of the psychology of music and goes on to discuss its astounding development, a process which is far from over even today. It continues with a particular look back to the 1980s and draws on my personal reminiscences, especially those experiences related to certain historic academic landmarks in Japan. The chapter summarizes notable presentations from an important symposium on the psychology of music held at the 2016 International Congress of Psychology (ICP) in Yokohama. Finally, I point out some new trends in the discipline.