scholarly journals Research on Music Therapy to Promote Health and Well-being of General Population

Author(s):  
Yanan Zhu
Author(s):  
Jane Edwards

Playing live music with people who are ill to promote optimal states of health and well being is a contemporary practice which has origins as far back as the written historical record. This paper examines a select range of literature from the academic spheres of medicine, music and music education published in the late 19th century through to the mid 20th century in order to interrogate and explore aspects of the history of music therapy and its development in the English speaking world.


2020 ◽  
pp. 138-153
Author(s):  
Raymond A. R. MacDonald ◽  
Graeme B. Wilson

This chapter focuses specifically upon the use of musical improvisation for health and well-being. It considers the fundamental features of improvisation and links them to possible improvements in health and well-being. A model showing the different types of communication processes involved is also presented. Improvisation has long been associated with the potential to bring about improvement in health. It is a key process used by music therapists and early texts outlining music therapy practice contained numerous examples of improvisational activities. This chapter draws these processes and potential outcomes together and explains four characteristics of musical improvisation identified as underpinning the health benefits: improvisation links conscious with unconscious processes; improvisation makes unique demands on cognition; improvisation facilitates creative interaction; and, improvisation enables the non-verbal expression of thoughts and feelings that may otherwise be difficult to express. When improvisation is viewed as a sophisticated form of social interaction, links to other non-musical contexts and the implications for health and well-being are clear.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-2
Author(s):  
Sharon Cuthbert ◽  
Alan Kellas ◽  
Lisa A. Page

Summary Engagement with natural environments is associated with improved health and well-being in the general population. This has implications for mental healthcare. Implementation of targeted nature-based interventions (green care) meets recovery needs and would enable research to develop, clarifying what works best for whom.


2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Hughes

Objectives The aim of the present study was to examine the health and well being of older lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people, the health issues that concern them, the services they use and challenges accessing services. Methods This study comprised a survey of the health and well being of 312 LGBTI people aged 50 years and over in New South Wales. The survey included the Short-Form 12 (SF-12) measure of health-related quality of life, the Kessler 10 (K10) measure of psychological distress, and the three-item Loneliness Scale. Results Higher levels of psychological distress, lower mental health and greater loneliness were found among this sample than is typically found in the general population. Mental health was lower among carers and those not in a relationship, while psychological distress was greater among those living alone and those experiencing higher rates of loneliness. The most commonly accessed health service was a general practitioner (GP), with most respondents reporting that they were open about their sexuality to their GP and that they had a regular GP. Some reported difficulties accessing health services because of their gender or sexual diversity. Conclusions Although many older LGBTI people are well, both physically and mentally, they do appear to face increased risk of certain health issues compared with the general population. What is known about the topic? Overseas research indicates that older LGBTI people may be at greater risk of certain physical and mental health conditions than the general population. What does this paper add? This paper provides Australian data, using well-validated instruments, on the health and well being of older LGBTI people. It provides evidence of the health issues that older LGBTI people are most concerned about and the barriers they face in accessing services. What are the implications for practitioners? It is important for health practitioners to be aware that older LGBTI people appear to be at increased risk of certain physical and mental health issues, such as loneliness and psychological distress. Providing opportunities for clients to identify their gender or sexual diversity may assist in monitoring risk factors and enable referral to promote healthy aging.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valerie Peters ◽  
Deborah Seabrook ◽  
Lee Higgins

This article presents a diversity of approaches and a heterogeneity of research methods used, where the aim is to contribute to understandings of how musical engagement across the lifecourse may foster health and well being. Multiple perspectives and methodological approaches located in the disciplines of music therapy, community music and music education will be described, including identifying affordances and constraints associated with documenting lifelong and lifewide musical pathways. The research presented examines how lifelong musical engagement in different contexts might contribute to health and well being for different populations. The authors describe and situate their disciplines, present different methodological approaches that might contribute to lifecourse research in music and provide examples of particular projects.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amelia Eisenstadt ◽  
Shaun Liverpool ◽  
Elisa Infanti ◽  
Roberta Maria Ciuvat ◽  
Courtney Carlsson

BACKGROUND Among the general public there appears to be a growing need and interest in receiving digital mental health and well-being support. In response to this, a number of mental health apps (MHapps) are becoming available for monitoring, managing and promoting positive mental health and well-being. Thus far, the evidence supports positive outcomes when users engage with digital interventions. However, there is high variability in the theoretical base informing MHapps and the features incorporated. Such differences can have implications for the efficacy of the apps and the level of engagement among specific target population groups. Moreover, such heterogeneity may influence the extent to which the data from various MHapps can be pooled to assess the strength of the evidence. OBJECTIVE We aimed to systematically review the available research on MHapps that promote emotion regulation, positive mental health, and well-being in the general population aged 18-45. More specifically, the review aimed at providing a systematic description of the theoretical background and features of MHapps while evaluating any potential effectiveness. METHODS A comprehensive literature search of key databases; MEDLINE (via Ovid), EMBASE (via Ovid), PsycINFO (via Ovid), Web of Science, and the Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) was conducted until January 2021. Studies were included if they described standalone mental health and well-being apps for adults without a formal mental health diagnosis. All studies were quality assessed against the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. In addition, the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool (ROB-2) was used to assess randomized control trials (RCTs). Data were extracted using a modified extraction form the Cochrane Handbook of Systematic Reviews. A narrative synthesis and meta-analysis was then undertaken to address the review aims. RESULTS In total, 3156 abstracts were identified. Of these, 52 publications describing 48 MHapps met the inclusion criteria. Together the studies evaluated interventions across 15 countries. Thirty-nine RCTs were identified that suggested there is some support for the role of individual MHapps in improving and promoting mental health and well-being. Regarding pooled effect, MHapps, when compared to controls, showed a small effect for reducing mental health symptoms (k = 19, g = -0.24, 95% CI [-0.34, -0.14], p < .05) and improving well-being (k = 13, g = 0.17, 95% CI [0.05, 0.29], p < .05), and a medium effect for emotion regulation (k = 6, g = 0.49, 95% CI [0.23,0.74], p<.05). There is also a wide knowledge base of creative and innovative ways to engage users in techniques, such as mood monitoring and guided exercises. Mindfulness and Cognitive Behavioural approaches appear to be the most common among MHapp developers. Studies were generally assessed to contribute unclear or high risk of bias, or be of medium to low methodological quality. CONCLUSIONS The emerging evidence for MHapps that promote positive mental health and well-being continue to show some evidence of promise. Despite a wide range of MHapps, there are not many that specifically promote emotion regulation. However, our findings may position emotion regulation as an important mechanism for inclusion in future positive mental health and well-being MHapps. A fair proportion of the included studies were pilot or feasibility trials (k = 17, 33%), and full scale RCTs reported high attrition rates and non-diverse samples. Given the number and pace at which MHapps are being released, further robust research is warranted to inform the development and testing of evidence-based programs. CLINICALTRIAL Mia Eisenstadt, Elisa Infanti, Shaun Liverpool. Characteristics and effectiveness of mobile apps that promote emotion regulation and well-being in the general population: a systematic review protocol. PROSPERO 2020 CRD42020213051 Available from: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42020213051


BJPsych Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsty Dunn ◽  
Deborah Kinnear ◽  
Andrew Jahoda ◽  
Alex McConnachie

Background Caring for a child with intellectual disabilities can be a very rewarding but demanding experience. Research in this area has primarily focused on mothers, with relatively little attention given to the mental health of fathers. Aims The purpose of this review was to summarise the evidence related to the mental health of fathers compared with mothers, and with fathers in the general population. Method A meta-analysis was undertaken of all studies published by 1 July 2018 in Medline, PsycINFO, CINAHL and EMBASE, using terms on intellectual disabilities, mental health and father carers. Papers were selected based on pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results Of 5544 results, 20 studies met the inclusion criteria and 12 had appropriate data for meta-analysis. For comparisons of fathers with mothers, mothers were significantly more likely to have poor general mental health and well-being (standardised mean difference (SMD) −0.38, 95% CI −0.56 to −0.20), as well as higher levels of depression (SMD, −0.46; 95% CI −0.68 to −0.24), stress (SMD, −0.32; 95% CI −0.46 to −0.19) and anxiety (SMD, −0.30; 95% CI −0.50 to −0.10). Conclusions There is a significant difference between the mental health of father and mother carers, with fathers less likely to exhibit poor mental health. However, this is based on a small number of studies. More data is needed to determine whether the general mental health and anxiety of father carers of a child with intellectual disabilities differs from fathers in the general population.


2012 ◽  
Vol 20 (10) ◽  
pp. 2545-2552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olinda Santin ◽  
Moyra Mills ◽  
Charlene Treanor ◽  
Michael Donnelly

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Jane Newson ◽  
Tara C Thiagarajan

BACKGROUND Existing mental health assessment tools provide an incomplete picture of symptom experience and create ambiguity, bias, and inconsistency in mental health outcomes. Furthermore, by focusing on disorders and dysfunction, they do not allow a view of mental health and well-being across a general population. OBJECTIVE This study aims to demonstrate the outcomes and validity of a new web-based assessment tool called the Mental Health Quotient (MHQ), which is designed for the general population. The MHQ covers the complete breadth of clinical mental health symptoms and also captures healthy mental functioning to provide a complete profile of an individual’s mental health from clinical to thriving. METHODS The MHQ was developed based on the coding of symptoms assessed in 126 existing Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)–based psychiatric assessment tools as well as neuroscientific criteria laid out by Research Domain Criteria to arrive at a comprehensive set of semantically distinct mental health symptoms and attributes. These were formulated into questions on a 9-point scale with both positive and negative dimensions and developed into a web-based tool that takes approximately 14 min to complete. As its output, the assessment provides overall MHQ scores as well as subscores for 6 categories of mental health that distinguish clinical and at-risk groups from healthy populations based on a nonlinear scoring algorithm. MHQ items were also mapped to the DSM fifth edition (DSM-5), and clinical diagnostic criteria for 10 disorders were applied to the MHQ outcomes to cross-validate scores labeled at-risk and clinical. Initial data were collected from 1665 adult respondents to test the tool. RESULTS Scores in the normal healthy range spanned from 0 to 200 for the overall MHQ, with an average score of approximately 100 (SD 45), and from 0 to 100 with average scores between 48 (SD 21) and 55 (SD 22) for subscores in each of the 6 mental health subcategories. Overall, 2.46% (41/1665) and 13.09% (218/1665) of respondents were classified as clinical and at-risk, respectively, with negative scores. Validation against DSM-5 diagnostic criteria showed that 95% (39/41) of those designated clinical were positive for at least one DSM-5–based disorder, whereas only 1.14% (16/1406) of those with a positive MHQ score met the diagnostic criteria for a mental health disorder. CONCLUSIONS The MHQ provides a fast, easy, and comprehensive way to assess population mental health and well-being; identify at-risk individuals and subgroups; and provide diagnosis-relevant information across 10 disorders.


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