When and how music promotes fantasies: a survey on Maladaptive Daydreaming

Daydreaming is a form of mind wandering involving structured, imaginative scenarios. Maladaptive daydreaming (MD), or compulsive fantasy disorder, involves vivid fantasies that disrupt daily life. This study investigates the role of music in daydreaming, particularly its effects on MD. Using an online survey, we compared individuals with MD (MDers) to control participants to assess how music influences daydreaming. Our findings indicate that music (vs other media) was reported as the most effective tool for triggering and maintaining daydreaming, especially among MDers. Both groups indicated heightened emotional content in music-driven daydreams, but MDers experienced significantly longer, more vivid fantasies, while controls had more reality-anchored daydreams. Music-induced features, such as positive valence and pleasure, were found to play a main role in promoting daydreaming states. Furthermore, individual differences in musical absorption predicted MD severity. By bridging music cognition and clinical perspective, this study provides insights into the mechanisms of MD and the potential for music-based interventions to improve mental well-being.