Resources & references

Music therapist Dany Bouchard explains how he uses music to connect with patients of the Mental Health Mission at the Montreal General Hospital. Through regular sessions, Dany helps them access their emotions, express their feelings, and open new doors to healing.

Music therapist Kevin Kirkland explains how he uses rapping to help persons with mental health and substance use issues to process their experiences and express themselves. 

This study aimed to investigate the impact of Remini-Sing RCT, community-based therapeutic choirs led by music therapists and offered to individuals with dementia and their caregivers. Preliminary results  showed a decrease in anxiety and depression. Considering the limited number of participants, the article also addresses the issue of  recruitment and retention of participants, to help future research and improve sustainability of such programs.

This article provides recommendations for music therapy practice and research among individuals with chronic pain using sickle cell disease as an exemplar condition. The research on music therapy for chronic pain management has shown that music therapy is particularly helpful in improving people's pain-related self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is well recognized to play an essential role in effective management of chronic pain.

This paper examines music therapy as a salutogenic approach within a biopsychosocial framework and emphasizes the need for its acceptance in India. Music therapy supports preventive and curative treatment, aids coping and acceptance for patients and caregivers, and offers a holistic, biopsychosocial approach to palliative care.

This study explores how a music therapy group was able to support young people's transition from mental health services into everyday community engagement. Results showed that the group provided a safe space to support the processes of coming together and constructing social identity. 

A pilot study of a the SMAART music therapy protocol shows that it can help prisoners with a Post Traumatic Stres Disorder (PTSD) in a Penitentiary Psychiatric Center. Neurologic music therapy techniques, guided breathing, singing and rhythmic exercises were effective in reducing hyperarousal and improving attention among participants.

This study analyzed songs written by active-duty military personnel who participated in music therapy sessions and were living with psychological health conditions and/or mild traumatic brain injury. These songs highlighted the challenges faced by the participants and gave them the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings with their loved ones for the first time.

Read how a group drumming protocol was successfully utilized as part of the psychosocial training program for patients in an acute psychiatric hospital setting.

Findings of this study suggest that a group songwriting music therapy intervention can be as effective as traditional psychoeducation to teach psychiatric patients how to proactively manage their illness.

The purpose of the current investigation was to examine the efficacy of a music therapy protocol on mood states and levels of group cohesiveness in adult oncology patients. Participants took part in "music making" sessions (where the mechanism for change included the process of making music) and "music responding" sessions (where the mechanism included the process of responding to music). 

The purpose of this study was to measure the effects of music therapy-based bereavement groups on mood and behavior of grieving children. The investigator concluded that participation in music therapy-based bereavement groups served to reduce grief symptoms among the subjects as evaluated in the home. Teacher and self-evaluations were less conclusive.