Music therapy is becoming widely recognised as an effective non-pharmacological therapeutic modality in dementia care, offering psychological, social, and physical benefits. However, little is known about the neurophysiological activity during active and receptive music therapy methods for persons with dementia. This may shed light on client experiences, particularly those with limited external responses. In this pre-experimental pilot study, a group of healthy older adults (n=5) and persons with mild-moderate (n=8) and severe dementia (n=5) received once-off individual music therapy sessions including receptive and active techniques during which heart rate (HR), respiration rate (RR), and electroencephalogram (EEG) responses were recorded. There was a general increase in HR from baseline resting measures and nonparametric tests showed significant changes during singing a familiar song (p=0.044) and drumming (p=0.019). An increase was also observed during vocal improvisation. RR was highly variable as it was influenced by singing. The largest increase occurred during drumming. The autonomic data suggest that active music therapy techniques may induce greater physiological arousal than receptive techniques but this requires further investigation. Findings were minimal for the prefrontal cortex EEG; however, there were significant limitations in the acquisition and analysis of this data. There was an unexpected decrease in Gamma power for participants with severe dementia during the drumming exercise, which may implicate the Default Mode Network (DMN). Four case examples are presented in the discussion that illustrate significant moments within the sessions and relate these to the real-time neurophysiological data. These case examples highlight the differences in engagement between participants with mild-moderate and severe dementia and explore several instances of the neurophysiological data that bring insight into participant experiences as well as the shortcomings of the neurophysiological data. Whilst the findings were modest, this research offers insight into the challenges and limitations of experimental research in music therapy and dementia. This dissertation reflects on the limitations of neurophysiological investigations of active music-making and the challenges of the dual researcher-therapist role. It critiques the ecological validity of protocolised music therapy and the use of purely quantitative methodology in music therapy research. / Mini Dissertation (MMus (Music Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2021. / Music / MMus (Music Therapy) / Unrestricted

This study explores music therapists’ and traditional healers’ understandings of their roles and relationships in the South African healthcare context with the hope of contributing to an emerging and fruitful dialogue. Interviews were held with two groups of participants: four traditional healers (TH), and four music therapists (MT), in this multiple case study. Thematic analysis was used to interpret the data. While the THs were mostly unfamiliar with MT as a discipline, THs and MTs converged in their views that musicking is a salient therapeutic approach in South Africa, as it is non-verbal and, therefore, crosses language barriers. The THs and MTs in this study acknowledged that the biomedical approach to mental health is valuable in relieving symptoms, but often does not approach the deeper cause(s). Therapeutic musicking, however, were thought to offer consolation, create opportunities for reflection, and a safe container to explore difficulties or trauma. Where MTs diverged from THs waas in their use of music to focus on clients developing personal agency. THs diverged from MTs in their use of music to perform spiritual healing. While the MTs recognised the value of spirituality for some clients, they saw this as being beyond their scope of practice. Both sets of practitioners described TH as a marginalised perspective that should be valued more, for its spiritual focus, and in light of advancing social justice. According to the MTs, validating marginalised perspectives is part of the greater therapeutic work of healing the effects of colonisation. The MTs hoped to learn from THs and gain a more cultural grounding in music, as well as indigenous knowledge systems. Both groups of practitioners envisioned a future healthcare system as having multiple modalities, with scopes of practice in mind, and developing more trust among disciplines, in order to better serve South Africa’s diverse population. / Mini Dissertation (MMus (Music Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2021. / National Arts Council / Music / MMus (Music Therapy) / Unrestricted

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University

No description available.

As helping professionals, music therapists show compassion to their clients but may lack necessary self-care skills to prevent burnout and promote well-being. Due to a lack of research in this area, this study investigated reported levels of compassion for others, self-compassion, burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and compassion satisfaction among music therapists in relation to age, gender, and years of professional experience. A survey of 575 board certified music therapists in the USA revealed higher levels of compassion for others than self-compassion, low levels of burnout and secondary traumatic stress, and high levels of compassion satisfaction. Burnout strongly negatively correlated with both self-compassion and compassion satisfaction and strongly positively correlated with secondary traumatic stress. A MANCOVA revealed significant differences in compassion for others and compassion satisfaction based on gender, with female participants reporting significantly higher scores for both constructs. Additionally, there was a trend related to self-compassion and compassion levels increasing over time. There were strong associations between compassion and self-compassion with burnout and secondary traumatic stress; therefore, it would benefit music therapists to cultivate compassion practices to lower burnout risk.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 104-115).

It is the purpose of this study (1) to discover the nature, history, and present day use of music in therapy; (2) to discover the types of patients at Sonoma State Hospital and their general needs in terms of rehabilitation services; (3) to discover the scope of the total rehabilitation program at Sonoma State Hospital and the part which music therapy plays; and (4) to discover the general principles, problems and techniques of music therapy used at Sonoma State Hospital.

This study explores the experiences of a group of music therapy students in setting up and working at three community placements: a residential home for the mentally disabled, an HIV/Aids clinic at a state hospital and a shelter for homeless boys. The study investigates how these students made use of a Community Music Therapy framework in conducting, reflecting on and discussing the music therapy work at these placements. The research was conducted utilizing qualitative research methodology and data were in the form of three semi-structured interviews which were conducted with the six students - two from each placement. Transcriptions of the interviews were subjected to content analysis by the researcher and these findings are discussed in relation to seven categories, namely Space and Boundaries, Performance, Community Music Therapy Theory, Staff’s varying Attitudes and Involvement, Goals and Value, Logistics and Challenges, and Students’ Personal Development. Lastly three themes that emerged from the data, namely Shifting the boundaries: music therapy inside and out; Interacting with the context and Students’ development: professional and personal growth, are discussed. / Dissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / gm2014 / Music / Unrectricted

Parkinson's disease, a disorder involving the excitatory-inhibitory functions of the basal ganglia, develops to a stage where the muscles used for respiration, phonation and articulation in speech appear affected by a decreased range of motion. Parkinson speech is characterized by reduced intensity, monoloudness, weak overall effort and reduced intraoral pressures. Reports also indicate that reduced vocal intensity is a deterrent to oral communication in patients with Parkinson's disease. The study sought to examine the effects of singing "stimulative" and "sedative" songs to ascertain if different types of music affect articulatory precision in persons with Parkinson's disease. Articulatory precision was divided into six categories: rate, rhythm, initial consonants, final consonants, continuity, and intelligibility. Eighteen individuals with Parkinson's disease whose ages ranged from 52 to 84 years, who demonstrated limited range of movement of oral and facial muscles and possessed normal hearing, participated in this study. Participants were asked to sing two short, familiar songs a cappella. One song was of a sedative nature (slow and soft). The other was of a stimulative nature (fast and loud). One paragraph of The Rainbow Passage was read before and after the sedative song for each participant and again before and after the stimulative song. The data in one category was significant and most of the speech samples were affected by the music conditions. Statistically significant scores were found when comparing the post-test scores for initial consonants after the slow and fast songs. Finding a significant difference in scores under these parameters shows the effects music has on speech and the possibilities for future studies. The two categories of articulatory precision that remained the same from pre-test to post-test, intelligibility and final consonants, did so after different treatments and mean post-test scores for rate was not affected by the treatments.

This is a mixed-methods pre-experimental clinical effectiveness trial that examines the effectiveness of a self-administered one-directional mood vectoring playlist in the management of symptoms of anxiety. This study used the Spielberger State Trait Anxiety Inventory, as well as a self-report Likert-type scale where participants rated their anxiety symptom severity, to explore the impact of the playlist intervention. Qualitative interviews sought to identify themes common among participants who were daily high responders and those who were daily low responders to the intervention in order to determine for whom this intervention would be most or least effective.Management of anxiety symptoms is particularly important at the moment, as mental health concerns and levels of anxiety are rising amid coronavirus lockdowns and stay at home orders. This intervention has a strong basis in music therapy research, neurological research, and psychotherapy treatments that are effectively used in the management of anxiety symptoms. Findings indicated a significant relationship between the intervention and a reduction in both state and trait anxiety scores over the full two-week course of treatment (p < 0.001). There was also a significant relationship found from pre-listening to post-listening on a daily basis (p = 0.003). This study has a small sample size and results should be interpreted with caution, but this is an indication that further studies on this intervention are warranted.