„Reminiscence Bump“ ist unsere Tendenz, seit Teenagerjahren stärkste emotionale Bindungen zur Musik aufzubauen. Bei Männern sind es rebellische Genres um Identität. Mit Frauen, Pop, Soul oder Klassik für soziale Bindungen. Oft mit Musik, die vor unserer Geburt veröffentlicht wurde, typischerweise aus der Zeit vor 25 Jahren, eingeführt von den Eltern.

I’ve linked to the press release in the post above. In this comment, for those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09658211.2025.2557960

From the linked article:

Global study shows why the songs from our teens leave a lasting mark on us

A new global study led by the University of Jyväskylä reveals that our most emotionally resonant music tends to come from our teenage years—peaking around age 17. This pronounced pattern, known as **the “reminiscence bump”, reflects our tendency to form the strongest emotional ties to music from our teenage years**.

The research found that in men, the reminiscence bump peaked earlier, around age 16, while in women the peak came later, after age 19. „As we do not have rich qualitative data from the participants, we can only speculate based on previous work on psychology and gender differences,“ Burunat notes.

Psychology research suggests that men often cement their musical identity earlier through adolescent bonding and independence. Women’s musical identity, by contrast, develops over a longer period, shaped by emotional connections and relationship milestones into young adulthood, a pattern often reinforced for women by society. This could explain why women’s strongest music memories peak slightly later.

Another key factor may be the musical genres themselves. **Men often gravitate toward intense, rebellious genres that fuel teenage identity and independence—a phase that peaks early. Women, however, tend to engage with a wider spectrum of music, from pop to soul to classical, often using it also as a tool for strengthening social bonds**. These broader purposes extend well beyond the teenage years and are often tied to vivid memories of specific social moments and relationships and may therefore contribute to a later peak in musical memory.

The study also shows that our connection to music continues to evolve throughout life – and differently for men and women. “Our data clearly shows that for men, music from adolescence becomes a lasting anchor for personal meaning, a finding that could be explained by society’s focus on youth and rebellion in shaping masculine identity”, explains Dr. Burunat. “Conversely, for women, the connection to music tends to shift over time, particularly starting in their mid-forties onward, as they commonly use music as a flexible tool for emotional expression and social bonding throughout their lives. This may explain why their most meaningful musical connections often shift to recent songs tied to current relationships, personal growth, or new experiences, sometimes even holding more emotional weight than the music from their youth.”

But there’s a twist that defies generational boundaries: younger listeners, **both men and women, often form deep connections to music released decades before they were born—typically from about 25 years earlier. Researchers term this phenomenon the „cascading reminiscence bump,“ and they believe it reflects strong cross-generational influence, likely shaped by music introduced by parents**, family, or enduring cultural icons from earlier eras.