This study aimed to shed light on the role of music in maladaptive daydreaming (MD), a psychological condition characterized by excessive, immersive daydreaming that interferes with well-being and functioning. Forty-one individuals with probable MD participated in asynchronous in-depth email interviews. A thematic analysis yielded three themes describing the role of music in MD. Two homogeneous themes pertained to outlier experiences: Music necessary and Music not desired. The third theme, Music enhances the MD experience, encompassed most of the data retrieved in this study and was further divided into five subthemes: Music avoided in “low energy” daydreaming scenes, Music as white noise, Music enhances MD creativity, Music as an MD trigger compromises the sense of agency; and Music as a powerful immerser that sets MD’s emotional “soundtrack.” This study adds to the sparse knowledge of complex visual narratives and identifies the essential role of music in inducing and formatting MD. The results led to the conclusion that music might be instrumental in MD by distancing the person from the external reality, triggering complex visual storylines, deepening the altered state of consciousness, and intensifying the vividness of the daydreamed plot by invoking an emotional response. Furthermore, hypothesis-driven controlled research was recommended.

中文翻译：

---

调调适应不良的白日梦：音乐对强迫性幻想体验的影响

这项研究旨在阐明音乐在适应不良白日梦（MD）中的作用，这是一种以过度、沉浸式白日梦为特征的心理状况，会干扰健康和功能。四十一名可能患有医学博士的人参加了异步深入的电子邮件访谈。主题分析产生了三个主题，描述了音乐在 MD 中的作用。与离群体验有关的两个同质主题：音乐必要性和音乐不需要。第三个主题，音乐增强 MD 体验，涵盖了本研究中检索到的大部分数据，并进一步分为五个子主题：在“低能量”白日梦场景中避免音乐、音乐作为白噪音、音乐增强 MD 创造力、音乐作为MD触发因素损害了代理意识；音乐作为强大的沉浸感，设定了 MD 的情感“配乐”。这项研究补充了复杂视觉叙事的稀疏知识，并确定了音乐在诱导和格式化 MD 中的重要作用。结果得出这样的结论：音乐可能在MD中发挥重要作用，它可以使人远离外部现实，触发复杂的视觉故事情节，加深改变的意识状态，并通过引发情感反应来增强白日梦情节的生动性。此外，建议进行假设驱动的对照研究。