Gentling the Bull: Harnessing Anti-Group Forces in Music Therapy Group Work with Adults with Learning Disabilities

2013 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wook se Cho
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Therapy Group ◽  
Adults With Learning Disabilities

The World is Alive! Music Therapy with Adults with Learning Disabilities

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tessa Watson
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Challenging Behavior ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Cognitive Disability ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Adults With Learning Disabilities ◽  
History Of ◽  
End Of Life Issues

This chapter describes music therapy work with adults with learning disabilities. This group of people have a cognitive disability that will not change, bringing with it challenges to living a fulfilled and satisfying life and sometimes associated health issues. A wide range of issues, from severe communication problems, bereavement, mental health problems, challenging behavior, to end-of-life issues require music therapists to bring a wide range of skills and approaches to their work. This chapter presents the diagnosis and history of this population, and the history of music therapy work in the area. The process of therapy is described, treatment models, and methods considered and clinical examples given.

Playing With Chaos: Broadening Possibilities for How Music Therapist’s Consider Chaos in Group Work With Young People

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Oosthuizen ◽  
Katrina McFerran
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
South African ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Group Process ◽  
Therapy Group ◽  
Organizational Studies ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
The Arts ◽  
African Context

Abstract Many music therapists have alluded to challenges in their work with groups of young people. However, chaos, incorporating experiences of disintegration and destruction, is a construct often overlooked in music therapy literature. Some music therapy authors have related experiences of chaos to the struggles faced by young people referred for therapy. These experiences require management, modification, or resolution. The authors of this article synthesized broader understandings and approaches towards chaos described in literature from fields including music therapy group work, drama therapy, the arts, psychoanalysis, organizational studies, and philosophy. Chaos is positioned as an inherent and necessary aspect of music therapy groups with young people, situated within a mutually potentiating relationship with more ordered features of a group process. From this paradoxical perspective, therapeutic transformation is enabled through creativity that holds the tension between order and the destructiveness of chaos. When chaos is welcomed in music therapy groups and framed within appropriate boundaries, the authors argue that experiences of chaos can be harnessed to support engagement with the paradoxes of creativity and destructiveness. The provision of a space to play with chaos supports young people who are required to flourish within adverse, chaotic life circumstances. The significance of this position for a group of young people who have committed offences in the South African context is highlighted.

scholarly journals How can I use, develop and improve a collaborative music therapy practice to enhance the sense of community at a day programme for adults with learning disabilities?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sophie Sabri
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Relationship Building ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Building Relationships ◽  
Adults With Learning Disabilities ◽  
Collaborative Music

<p>Everyone needs to belong. People with disabilities often experience belonging to restricted communities of people who usually have similar needs. The purpose of this study is to investigate how music therapy could enhance the sense of community at a day program for adults with learning disabilities. The project focuses on exploring and improving my own collaborative music therapy practice in order to reach the goal of this research.  This action research follows three cycles of planning, acting and reflecting. The different cycles observe my own collaborative skills, moments of togetherness as an expression of a sense of community and relationship building with different communities of people. The data analysis involves a thematic analysis of my clinical and reflective notes taken during each cycle. I have used song composition for each cycle as a tool for integrating meaning and summarising my learning.  The process of this action research helped me understand that:  1) Effective collaboration with staff required working genuinely as a team, sharing goals and acknowledging individual skills. 2) A sense of community was about connecting with others but also about self- realisation in a group. 3) Building relationships between people, staff, whānau, the local community and communities of musicians contributed to enhance the sense of community at the facility.  Collaboration is an essential skill for music therapists aiming at connecting people with their community and to expend connections to a wider horizon.</p>

scholarly journals Musicking Together: Affective, Cognitive and Physical Aspects of a Music Therapy Group Work

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosemyriam Cunha
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Group Work ◽  
Therapy Group ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Community Music ◽  
Sociology Of Music ◽  
Music Making ◽  
Collective Experience ◽  
Structured Observation

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe and discuss the affective, cognitive, and physical events that occur when people gather to make music. Using a theoretical framework derived from community music therapy and sociology of music, this work focuses on the experiences and perceptions of five women who participated in music therapy group work. Structured observation was used to register the participants’ affective, cognitive, and physical manifestations during the group work. Results suggested that music therapy collective music making stimulated participants to interact and develop different forms of feeling, thinking, and acting. Making music together encouraged participants to think about their feelings, roles, and judgments, reflecting that the collective experience promoted positive changes in their lives.

scholarly journals How can I use, develop and improve a collaborative music therapy practice to enhance the sense of community at a day programme for adults with learning disabilities?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sophie Sabri
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Music Therapy ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Relationship Building ◽  
Music Therapists ◽  
Building Relationships ◽  
Adults With Learning Disabilities ◽  
Collaborative Music

<p>Everyone needs to belong. People with disabilities often experience belonging to restricted communities of people who usually have similar needs. The purpose of this study is to investigate how music therapy could enhance the sense of community at a day program for adults with learning disabilities. The project focuses on exploring and improving my own collaborative music therapy practice in order to reach the goal of this research.  This action research follows three cycles of planning, acting and reflecting. The different cycles observe my own collaborative skills, moments of togetherness as an expression of a sense of community and relationship building with different communities of people. The data analysis involves a thematic analysis of my clinical and reflective notes taken during each cycle. I have used song composition for each cycle as a tool for integrating meaning and summarising my learning.  The process of this action research helped me understand that:  1) Effective collaboration with staff required working genuinely as a team, sharing goals and acknowledging individual skills. 2) A sense of community was about connecting with others but also about self- realisation in a group. 3) Building relationships between people, staff, whānau, the local community and communities of musicians contributed to enhance the sense of community at the facility.  Collaboration is an essential skill for music therapists aiming at connecting people with their community and to expend connections to a wider horizon.</p>

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