Resources & references

A music therapy group program was provided in a day program for adolescents with eating disorders. They came to group sessions once per week after lunch for one school term. Group members helped choose the content for the sessions which mainly involved music-based games. Working with young people to design session content may help build a positive relationship and music games may be useful for reducing distress.

Read a research study on the impact of music therapy during burn care in a pediatric setting for the medical professionals providing the care. Results indicated that survey respondents felt more relaxed, less stressed, better patient compliance  and a better overall experience when music therapy was present than when it was not.

This case study explores a music therapy assessment of an autistic child in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It presents the stages of the assessment, assessment tools, and assessment findings.

Read about a group music therapy program in Spain for adults with visual disabilities and blindness, targeting psychomotor and socio-emotional domains.

Music-based interventions (MBIs) are emerging as a new potential treatment strategy for neurologic and psychiatric patient populations, as they are safe, economic, and can be creatively tailored to meet specific functional goals. MBIs are typically selected and delivered by a credentialed music therapist based on empirically supported models and can involve active (improvisation, singing, clapping, or dancing) and/or receptive (purposeful music listening to identify emotional content emerging from music) techniques. Mechanistically, MBIs appear to engage both cortical and subcortical areas governing attention, working memory, planning, and flexibility and can modulate these areas over time.

This article analyzed hello songs composed by music therapists to identify best practices in their composition and use. 

Read about a therapy program by an art and music therapist for transgender, nonbinary, and gender-questioning youth, supporting gender identity exploration and learn about the challenges and opportunities encountered during its pilot implementation.

This article explores how music therapy can serve as a self-care management resource for improving self-efficacy and mediating the relationship between vulnerability factors and health outcomes for patients with sickle cell disease. Accordingly, it is important for appropriate patient reported outcomes to be used within practice and research to capture these important domains and improve our understanding of how music therapy can help individuals with chronic pain achieve meaningful outcomes.

The Canadian Music Therapy Podcast celebrated two years of episodes in February 2023. Hosted by music therapist Adrienne Pringle and business leader Cathy Thompson, the bi-weekly podcast shines a bright light on the impact and work of music therapists across Canada. This reflective article features Adrienne’s and Cathy’s personal explorations of themes and ideas that emerged from a close examination of the podcast transcripts from the first 40 interview-based episodes. 

A music therapy program in the waiting room of a burn unit uses active music therapy experiences to support patients, by enhancing pain management and reducing pain perception.

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 introduces an adaptation of the music therapy and autism specific AQR-instrument. The author developed this adaptation following the requirement to report on the outcomes of his work at a school for children with autism. After introducing the AQR-instrument, the author describes how his adaptation enables him to produce bar charts illustrating client progress.