The effect of binaural beats on working memory capacity

Binaural beats are defined as auditory perceptions, occuring when two tones of slightly different frequencies are presented separately to each ear. When the binaural beat beats with the frequency that corresponds to the state of alpha wave range, than it is believed that the overall brain activity changes accordingly. In this study it is assumed that binaural beat corresponding to alpha wave range will subsequently enhance working memory capacity (WMC). In the following study, participants were divided into two groups. One group underwent a binaural beat stimulation, while listening to the sound of sea. The other group was listening solely to the sound of sea without binaural beat stimulation. We measured baseline and post-stimulation working memory capacity using OSPAN method. As expected, only participants from the binaural beat group showed an improvement in WMC.