Someone has figured out how to turn playlists into music therapy

We all turn to music when we need a little mental health pick-me-up. But what if there was a way to turbocharge that into some kind of effective therapy. There’s now an app for that.

The Emotion Equalization App, a product of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, makes some interesting promises. It’s said to be “first aid strategy for balancing emotions.” This comes from Man Hei Law, a PhD who worked on the app. He says “that the app could help people who may not want to receive counseling or treatment because of feelings of shame, inadequacy, or distrust. By taking listeners on an emotional roller-coaster ride, the app aims to leave them in a more positive and focused state than where they began.”

Users start by running through three questionnaires designed to measure a person’s emotional state (positive/neutral/negative mood and the same with energy level), and then use that info to create a custom playlist. It will be geared–and carefully sequenced—to whatever you need at the time: consoling, relaxing, or uplifting.

Might be cheaper and as effective as a human therapist. Read more here.