This collaborative, creative project includes 100 music therapy interventions for all ages including children 0-18, young adults 19-25, adults 26-65, and older adults/geriatrics 65-death. Five goal areas are focused on for each of the four populations. These goal areas are cognitive, social, physical, emotional, and behavioral. Each intervention was modeled after Duerksen's (1978) five ways in which music can be used as a organizational, helpful, learning tool: (1) Music as a carrier of information (2) Music as a reinforcer (3) Music as a background for learning (4) Music as a physical structure for the learning activity (5) Music as a reflection of skills or processes learned. The creative possibilities of interacting musically with clients of all ages and levels of functioning are what led us to create this project. The wide variety of populations covered in this project include children on the autism spectrum, young adults suffering from depression, and geriatrics exhibiting symptoms of Dementia. This book encompasses all of these populations and more, providing client-centered activities to use in music therapy sessions. This project was created with the intention of sharing it with fellow students and peers, as well as for the future use of ourselves in our internship experiences and careers.

This project creates a possible framework for the application of music therapy to reduce test anxiety in students. Although music therapy has grown in recent years as a treatment method for a variety of mental health and wellness problems, it has yet to be comprehensively applied to the specific issue of test anxiety. Some studies have examined the use of music in testing situations in order to reduce anxiety or improve academic performance. However, more in-depth music therapy interventions are a promising, largely untried treatment possibility for students suffering from this type of anxiety.

This theoretical inquiry is a response to the apparent need for resources on providing music therapy for LGBTQ adolescents, a population facing systematic oppression in their respective homes and communities. Since there are no published research studies on actual clinical work with this population, I investigated the literature of queer theory, an interdisciplinary field that destabilizes sexual categories and challenges the concept of normal and fixed identities, and applied its theoretical concepts to develop music therapy interventions. I was especially influenced by the ideas of foundational queer theorists Michel Foucault, Eve Sedgwick, and Judith Butler, among others. Their perspectives can advance how music therapists currently approach working with this population and interpret music therapy experiences with LGBTQ clients. The theoretical insights of these fields can be applied to impact the LGBTQ movement for social justice by empowering queer youth using music within a therapeutic environment. This interdisciplinary project incorporates queer theory with music therapy theory to develop evidence-based interventions and open up new perspectives in music therapy practice with LGBTQ clients.

Music therapy literature provides evidence that the use of music is very effective in improving daily living skills for people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) all over the world. However, each country may have and use their preferred music therapy approaches and interventions for clients with ASD because of cultural differences although music therapy comes from the same origin.

The aim of this research was to discover the cultural differences between American and Korean parents of children with ASD by comparing two countries in various categories, such as care systems, benefits and challenges in raising children with ASD, and therapeutic approaches in music therapy and other therapies used for these children.

The data that was gathered from the survey consisted of 4 participant groups: American parents, Korean parents, American music therapists, and Korean music therapists. This study examined the differences and similarities in the parental perspectives of children with ASD and music therapy treatment practices for individuals with ASD between two countries through the survey methods, integrating quantitative (closed-ended) and qualitative (open-ended) survey questions.

The results of the findings indicated that there were several kinds of cultural differences in treating children with ASD, such as care systems, benefits and challenges in raising their children, and therapies used for children with ASD between American and Korean children. Overall, Korean parent participants reported experiencing fewer benefits than American parent participants in the question concerning country-level benefits. Statistically speaking, the study could not find any significant differences in using therapies for children with ASD as well as music therapy treatment practices between America and Korea. However, the study found that there were some differences in the music therapy approaches and preferred music therapy interventions for ASD-diagnosed children which were summarized in responses from parents and therapists. The primary difference noticed that American music therapists preferred behavioral and neurologic techniques, while Korean music therapists preferred behavioral and Nordoff-Robbins techniques.

Because of some of the study limitations, the results may not be generalizable. In future research, many more participants need to be engaged with a narrow range of conditions.

The bereaved and those who have experienced trauma have received support through music therapy. However, there has been no research on the effectiveness of music therapy as a therapeutic intervention for those who have experienced the loss of a loved one by suicide. While every loss presents its own challenges, those who experience a suicide loss may need extra support to process the traumatic nature of the death. This study aims to explore the current research on grief and trauma to determine what information can be applied to the care of those who have experienced a suicide loss. The present study is a group case study of survivors of suicide who have experienced a loss within the last 3 years. Participants received weekly music therapy sessions for four weeks. All participants completed the Inventory of Traumatic Grief, prior to and at the conclusion of the music therapy sessions, and the pre and post test scores were compared. Additionally qualitative data was collected throughout the sessions, indicating any common themes that emerged throughout the sessions and the participants’ reactions to the interventions, as well as in a short questionnaire following the four sessions.

ABSTRACT

Music therapy is a highly effective treatment when used in the care of persons with dementia (PWD) and singing in particular is found to be calming and pleasurable to PWD. Seniorsing.net is a music-based application for use in memory care that provides a fun and interactive sing along activity for PWD. Developed by a music therapist, the application is designed to engage the user in singing along with recorded song performances while lyrics are displayed on the device screen. Seniorsing.net is accessible on any mobile device and is intended to provide a positive musical experience for PWD, whether listening or singing along. This study was conducted to test the design aspects of the application for use with PWD and their caregivers. Eighteen dyads of participants/caregivers were recruited from the senior community. Participants were observed interacting with seniorsing.net by the music therapist to provide an understanding of the usability of seniorsing.net and to collect information on the responses of PWD to seniorsing.net. Caregivers were given the opportunity to evaluate seniorsing.net via survey. The parameters that were measured included visual clarity and appeal, audibility, clarity of directions and usability by PWD and their caregivers. Observations of participants showed positive interactions with the application. Over 64% of participants independently engaged in singing with the application and over 50% of participants were able to activate features of the application with minimal assistance. Caregiver feedback was also positive. Most caregivers strongly agreed or agreed to the effectiveness of the design and its ease of use with PWD. 100% of caregivers found the song performances to be appropriate and comfortable to follow and sing. Caregivers gave suggestions for improvement of seniorsing.net, such as including more song choices and having more written directions on some of the screens. In conclusion, seniorsing.net was found to be enjoyable and easy to use by PWD and their caregivers.

Keywords: Dementia, Music Therapy, Singing, Technology

The purpose of this research project is to explore which musical mode, major and minor, is more effective to motivate children with Asperger's syndrome. To determine the more effective mode, the researcher has conducted experiments with seven students, two female and five male, with Asperger's syndrome on motivation for participation. Simple dance movements were used as a method of measurement for their motivation. The subjects' task was copying the researcher's simple dance with music, in major or minor mode, or with no music. There were three conditions, no music, major music, and minor music. However, the first dance of the experiments that had no music condition was not measured as it was a pre-test. All of the subjects followed the dance movements three times. The second and third dances of the experiments that were major or minor music conditions were used to determine which musical mode is more effective. To determine subjects' motivation from major and minor music, there were three areas of measurement; competency (level of execution) of movements, facial expression, and concentration on the dance for each experiment. All of the experiments were video-recorded for the evaluation. As a tool of measurement, a seven-point Likert scale was used. In addition, there were three evaluators: a professional music therapist, MT-BC; an undergraduate music therapy student at ASU; and a music education student of master's degree at ASU. In the evaluation on the measurements, the scores of the major music condition were slightly higher than the scores of the minor music condition in all three areas; competency of movements, facial expression, and concentration on the dance. However, the differences of the results in all three areas were not statistically significant.

This mixed methods research study explores the experiences of Board Certified music therapists who completed a university-affiliated (UA) internship as part of their education and clinical training in music therapy. The majority of music therapy students complete a national roster (NR) internship as the final stage in clinical training. Limited data and research is available on the UA internship model. This research seeks to uncover themes identified by former university-affiliated interns regarding: (1) on-site internship supervision; (2) university support and supervision during internship; and (3) self-identified perceptions of professional preparedness following internship completion. The quantitative data was useful in creating a profile of interns interviewed. The qualitative data provided a context for understanding responses and experiences. Fourteen Board Certified music therapists were interviewed (N=14) and asked to reflect on their experiences during their university-affiliated internship. Commonalities discovered among former university-affiliated interns included: (1) the desire for peer supervision opportunities in internship; (2) an overall perception of being professionally prepared to sit for the Board Certification exam following internship; (3) a sense of readiness to enter the professional world after internship; and (4) a current or future desire to supervise university-affiliated interns.

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a non-progressive neurologic disorder characterized by motor pathway damage prior to functional development. Damage to the central nervous system impairs motor functioning, including control of motor movement, loss of coordination, and loss of purposeful posture in individuals with cerebral palsy. This creates abnormal walking gait, impaired balance, and loss of muscle control. Current research shows positive results in studying the use of rhythmic music and walking gait for individuals with neurologic disorders. However, most research focuses on neurologic disorders acquired later in life, such as post-stroke patients and individuals with Parkinson's disease and traumatic brain injuries. The current study addresses the impact of rhythmic music on walking gait for an individual with cerebral palsy. Research addresses whether the use of rhythmic music impacts: (a) endurance (laps, distance traversed, and steps taken) (b) cadence (steps per minute), (c) velocity (distance over time), (d) emotional responsiveness (positive or negative affect), and (e) motivation. The current study is a single subject, mixed method design under randomized treatment conditions. The subject is a 25-year-old female diagnosed with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy. The subject participated in a five-week study, three times a week for one hour each session. Assessment was conducted during the first session. The following 14 sessions included gait training either under treatment (the use of recorded rhythmic music accompanied by audible drum beat) or control (no music) randomly assigned prior to the beginning of the study. Data were collected through video recordings, subject and researcher journals, and emotional responsiveness surveys. Data were analyzed for treatment versus control conditions. Analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data indicated that rhythmic music does impact walking gait for individuals with cerebral palsy. When compared to control conditions, the treatment conditions showed an increase in endurance, cadence, and velocity, and improvement in affect and motivation.