Impact of the Traditional Lecture Teaching Method and Dalcroze’s Body Rhythmic Teaching Method on the Teaching of Emotion in Music—A Cognitive Neuroscience Approach

Background: Although the Shared Affective Movement Experience (SAME) model suggests the crucial role of imitation and synchronization in music-induced emotion, their application in teaching settings remains largely unexplored. Objectives:This study compared the “Body Rhythm Teaching Method,” based on the principle of mimicking musical elements through bodily movements, with traditional lecture-based instruction. It examined the effects of both teaching approaches on brain activation patterns, measured via functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning and instructional outcomes (assessed through musical emotion processing and teaching quality evaluations). The aim was to investigate their efficacy in enhancing students' musical emotional processing abilities. Methods: A total of 3 teachers and 103 student participants were randomly assigned to the lecture teaching group (n = 35), the body rhythm teaching group (n = 35), or the control group (n = 33). The musical materials used across all three groups were identical, with only the teaching methods differing. fNIRS hyperscanning imaging was employed throughout the process to record brain activity. Results: Results indicate that the body rhythm group significantly outperformed other groups in both behavioral and neural metrics. Specifically, during the post-test music-listening phase, participants in this group not only reported higher emotional arousal but also exhibited stronger activation levels in the bilateral frontopolar cortex (FPC) associated with multisensory integration—both significantly higher than those in the lecture group and control group. Furthermore, during instruction, students in the body rhythm group rated teaching quality higher and exhibited significantly stronger teacher–student IBS across multiple brain regions involved in socio-emotional processing. These included the left orbitofrontal cortex (lOFC) for interoceptive emotion processing, the left frontopolar cortex (lFPC) for multisensory integration, and the right superior temporal gyrus (rSTG) for social interaction. In contrast, the lecture teaching group only showed significantly higher emotional valence ratings compared to the control group. Conclusions: This study confirms the role of imitation and synchronization mechanisms in the SAME model for music-induced emotional responses, providing a neuroscientific basis for teaching practice.