Gender Differences in Short-term Memory Related to Music Genres

•The effect of different auditory stimuli on short-term memory was examined (presence/absence of music/music genres).•The role of the gender was also examined.•Short-term memory was examined via a standard test for word recollection, while the sample consisted of 168 students.•Gender as a single parameter was noted to be playing a significant role in the recall process (females outperformed males).•Music as a stimulus was also found to affect the recall process significantly, but negatively, regardless of the genre. The purpose of the present research was to examine whether different music settings could influence one’s cognitive function – particularly memory. The examined sample consisted of 168 college students with a male:female ratio of 1:2.2. The participants were asked to complete a short-term memory test regarding word recollection while exposed to auditory stimuli. They were divided into three groups, each experiencing very different auditory stimuli (classical music; heavy metal music; no music). The results indicated that gender (as a single parameter) played a significant role in the recall process, with female subjects achieving significantly higher scores than males (p-value = 0.006). Music as an external stimulus was also found to affect the recall process significantly (0.02