Feasibility study examining the short-term effects of Sonic Augmentation Technology™.

Background: The current study evaluated Sonic Augmentation Technology™ (SAT), a novel, Polyvagal-informed probe that incorporates continuously varying and acoustic features modeled on patterns of autonomic regulation into musical soundscapes. Specifically, the study examined whether SAT led to improvements in self-reported biobehavioral state (e.g. relaxation, breathing slowly, interoceptive clarity), and whether individuals with poorer baseline functioning (i.e., increased autonomic reactivity and anxiety/depression symptoms) reported greater improvements in biobehavioral state following SAT. It also sought to determine whether there would be changes in endogenous oxytocin level, and whether individuals who exhibit larger gains in biobehavioral state would show greater increases in oxytocin. Methods: The current study examined data obtained from four samples, with 72 participants providing data virtually and 41 participants providing data in-person. Participants completed self-report measures of biobehavioral state, autonomic reactivity, and psychiatric symptomatology (i.e. anxiety and depression). Salivary oxytocin (pg/mL) was assessed via enzyme immunoassay in the participants who completed the study in person, with samples collected pre-and post-SAT. Results: Following SAT, participants reported significant improvements in total biobehavioral state and the low and high arousal subscales. We also found that participants scoring above the cutoff for autonomic reactivity, anxiety, and depression reported greater increases in total biobehavioral state and decreases in the high arousal subscale. Greater decreases in the low arousal subscale were observed in the participants with increased anxiety. The subset of participants with salivary oxytocin samples exhibited increases in salivary oxytocin. Conclusions: Thus, our results support the potential of SAT as a low-cost, non-invasive auditory probe for improving wellbeing, especially for clinical populations experiencing autonomic dysregulation and psychiatric difficulties, such as anxiety and depression. Clinical trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifiers NCT06710886, NCT06902506, NCT06580119, and NCT07065227.