What is music therapy? A survey study of public awareness and perceptions of the profession

Since emerging in the 1940s, the music therapy profession has grown to an estimated 15,000 qualified music therapists practising in 55 countries across a diverse range of contexts (e.g. Tsiris, 2015; WFMT, 2020). Yet music therapists feel the public have a poor understanding of the profession (e.g. Kern and Tague, 2017; Pearson, 2018); to date, however, there is no empirical evidence to support such claims. The current study sought to address this gap in the literature by conducting an online survey to explore public awareness and perceptions of music therapy. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used to analyse data from 359 non-music therapists aged 18 or over, of whom 46% were from the UK, 18% from the US, and the rest from 37 other countries. Results revealed that participants appreciated the therapeutic value of music but lacked awareness and understanding of professional music therapy services—this paper argues that such poor understanding is likely to reduce people’s prospects of seeking the service. Therefore, governing bodies of the profession should focus their attention on improving public awareness of fundamental aspects of music therapy, and helping the public distinguish between the profession of music therapy and a therapeutic use of music.