Abstract

A growing body of research concerns the influence of auditory stimuli on motor action. The present review recalls the relevance of two theoretical frameworks (referring to the mirror neurons system and the "Theory of Event Coding", respectively) for rehabilitation and sport. Then, it describes the laboratory studies showing the effectiveness of acoustic stimuli in improving performance in simple motor tasks, as well as applied research on the effectiveness of exposure to acoustic rhythms in facilitating gait and improving various sport performances. Potential developments of research on the effects of sound on rehabilitation and sport are indicated in the conclusions.