This study explores the concept of imaginative play within music therapy sessions with two pre-school children in a mainstream school. This is based on pre-existing material from my clinical work at a pre-school in 2008. My interest in the phenomenon of imaginative play that emerged within our sessions gave rise to this dissertation. I found that, within my sessions, imaginative play seemed to be particularly helpful in the development of the therapeutic relationship. Thus, the aim is to explore how moments of imaginative play emerged within sessions, how the client and therapist interacted within these moments, and how this affected the therapeutic relationship and served to address therapeutic goals. This is addressed within the main research question. In addition to this, I look at the advantages and limitations of working with imaginative play in music therapy, and how music therapists can use their skills during these moments. This is addressed within the two sub-questions. This study aims to offer valuable insight about the phenomenon of imaginative play in music therapy, with particular focus on pre-school children. The study is conducted within the qualitative research paradigm, and is exploratory in nature. It follows a case study design, where pre-existing data from sessions is analysed in detail. The data consists of three video excerpts. Two excerpts are taken from different points in one session with an individual client (D), and the third is taken from an individual session with another client (F), where I was the co-therapist. The data has been transcribed, coded, categorized and organized into themes, which highlight the use and implications of using imaginative play in music therapy sessions. Findings indicate that imaginative play in music therapy sessions can be beneficial in promoting interaction, mutual participation as well as offering the client an alternative medium through which they can express different ideas and feelings where music did not seem to do so. It also provided an enjoyable experience for both the client and therapist, allowing for a more relaxed, therapeutic atmosphere and for the therapeutic relationship to develop. / Mini Dissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / gm2014 / Music / Unrestricted

Ce travail de recherche s’intéresse au potentiel thérapeutique de la lecture et vise à mieux comprendre le fonctionnement du dispositif littéraire, notamment dans son interaction avec le lecteur. En nous appuyant sur la théorie des mondes parallèles, nous faisons l’hypothèse que l’œuvre littéraire induit une simulation de la vie psychique du lecteur. Par le biais du canal sémiotique qu’est le texte et selon des dispositifs de représentation, le lecteur ressaisit le sens des mots et s’approprie le récit. En tant qu’expérience esthétique, la lecture littéraire fait appel au vécu du lecteur et engage ses émotions autrement que tout autre type de discours. Le geste de la lecture sous-entend déjà une certaine subjectivité du lecteur et nous pouvons donc, dès lors que nous nous intéressons de plus près à l’interaction entre texte et lecteur, concevoir une utilisation thérapeutique de la littérature. En proposant l’œuvre littéraire comme support de développement psychique, nous avons conçu, animé et évalué un atelier thérapeutique de lecture et d’écriture dans trois structures en santé mentale, à Toulouse et à Montréal. Destiné à un public souffrant de psychose, cet atelier s’appuie sur les principes de l’art-thérapie et vient concrétiser l’aspect (re)constructeur de la lecture littéraire inscrite dans notre réflexion théorique. Nos observations, d’une part, interrogent la perspective théorique littéraire, la fonction attribuée à l’œuvre et l’activité du lecteur et, d’autre part, débouchent sur des propositions thérapeutiques pour un atelier de lecture et d’écriture en milieu psychiatrique. / This research is interested in the therapeutic potential of literary reading and looks for a better understanding of the literary device, particularly in its interaction with the reader. Basing our work on fictional worlds theory, we make the hypothesis that literary work induces a simulation of the reader’s psychic life. Using the semiotic channel of the text and according to representation devices, the reader seizes the words’ sense and adapts the story for himself. As an aesthetic experience, literary reading calls for the reader’s past experiences and engages his emotions in a different way than any other type of discourse. The gesture of reading already implies a certain subjectivity for the reader and we can therefore, as we take a closer interest to text-reader interaction, imagine a therapeutic use of literature. Proposing literary work as a support for psychic development, we have designed, ran and evaluated therapeutic reading and writing sessions in three mental health infrastructures, in Toulouse and Montreal. Destined to a psychotic audience, these reading sessions are based on art therapy principles and concretize the (re)constructive aspect of literary reading within our theoritical reflection. On one hand, our observations challenge the literary studies perspective, the function of the literary work and the activity of the reader and, on the other hand, they lead on therapeutic propositions for reading and writing sessions in a psychiatric context.

This mixed-method study investigated the effects of self-directed physiological monitoring on therapists anxiety. Ten therapists participated in a10-week physiological monitoring training sessions while monitoring respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and heart rate variability (HRV). The participants completed the state-trait anxiety inventory questionnaire after having a first, sixth, or tenth therapy session with a client. This was designed to monitor their state anxiety while working with clients. A series of paired sampled t-tests was conducted to assess changes in HRV, RSA, trait anxiety, and state anxiety. One significant result was found: the RSA of the therapist increased significantly. Correlations existed between the HRV of the therapist increasing and the trait anxiety of the therapist decreasing through RSA training sessions although they were not significant at the .05 level.