The use of music to engage children with autism in a receptive labelling task

Children with autism are less engaged with social and non-social objects and activities than their typically developing peers, resulting in reduced learning opportunities. There is some support for the use of music to enhance the engagement of children with autism but there has been little research investigating the use of music to engage children in language learning tasks and determining if this impacts on learning outcomes. This study investigated the use of music to engage children with autism in a receptive labelling intervention. Twenty two children (mean age 5.9 yrs) participated in a randomised controlled cross-over design comparing sung and spoken conditions embedded into a computer based intervention. Child performance and observational data were analysed to determine relationships between music, engagement and learning outcomes. The findings from this research showed children with autism were more engaged in the sung condition compared to the spoken condition although there was considerable variability in levels of engagement between participants. Furthermore, a correlation between engagement and learning was found. Implications of these findings are discussed and recommendations made for future research.     

聆听音乐及呼吸训练缓解腹腔镜胆囊切除术患者不良反应的效果

【摘要】 目的 观察聆听音乐及呼吸训练在缓解腹腔镜胆囊切除术患者不良反应的效果。方法 选择腹腔镜胆囊切除术患者80例,按随机数字表法随机分为干预组和对照组各40例。对照组术后常规中流量吸氧并协助早期下床活动,干预组在对照组处理的基础上给予聆听音乐及呼吸训练,采用视觉模拟评分(VAS)评估患者的疼痛开始时间及疼痛初始、术后12 h、术后24 h及术后48 h的疼痛程度,观察患者不良反应发生率。结果 干预组患者疼痛开始时间较对照组明显延迟,疼痛初始、术后12 h、术后24 h及术后48 h的疼痛程度较对照组明显减轻,两者相比较(P<0.001),差异有统计学意义。患者不良反应的发生率较对照组明显减少,两者相比较(P<0.05),差异有统计学意义。结论 聆听音乐及呼吸训练有利于缓解全麻下腹腔镜胆囊切除术患者的术后疼痛及不良反应,提高患者舒适度。     

Musical life review for the elderly with dementia as spiritual care—Clinical functions and roles of meaningful or memorable songs

Life review with music activities such as singing and listening to clients’ meaningful or memorable songs is a commonly practiced technique in various clinical settings. In the current paper, two case studies of life review with two Japanese elderly women with dementia were presented. We used a theoretical framework called “Musical Life Review” model (Sato, 2011) to analyze the functions of clients’ meaningful or memorable songs used during life review sessions. Furthermore, we determined spiritual needs displayed by clients with Murata's theoretical model (Murata, 2003), which is intended to clarify the structure of spiritual pain. Clinical values and functional meanings of musical life review for people with dementia were also discussed.     

A qualitative study of Korean music therapist's turnover experiences

Nine Korean music therapists’ turnover experiences were examined using consensual qualitative research. Five domains and 24 categories were created from the cross-analysis of the data. The domains of this study were: (a) factors contributing to turnover; (b) burnout; (c) turnover procedure; (d) changes after turnover; and (e) factors contributing to retention. Based on the frequency label of each category, three types of categories were generated: general (8–9 cases), typical (5–7 cases), and variant (2–3 cases). The result showed that the lack of recognition for music therapy among administrators, supervisors, and peer therapists contributed to music therapists’ turnover decision. However, it was found that these participants had a strong sense of professionalism, which was expressed through their work, regardless of the various challenges posed by environmental conditions. In fact, financial sources such as work conditions and salary were only categorized as variant whereas the professional incentives were identified generally across participants in this study.     

Effects of music therapy on spirituality with patients on a medical oncology/hematology unit: A mixed-methods approach

Despite considerable interest in the potential relationship between oncology and spirituality, it remains unclear how the spiritual wellbeing of patients is best addressed in health care environments. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of three music therapy doses on spirituality in patients on a medical oncology/hematology unit (N = 17). The researchers measured participants’ faith, peace, and meaning by using the FACIT-Sp. tool ( Brady, Peterman, Fitchett, Mo, & Cella, 1999) at pre- and posttest during a randomized controlled design. The researchers also incorporated interviews from patients concerning potential effects of music therapy and spirituality. Quantitative results indicated significant between-group differences in peace and faith subscales, with participants in the music therapy condition having higher posttest means than participants in the control condition. Qualitative data tended to support the importance of music therapy in meeting spiritual needs: Results of a thematic analysis indicated music therapy helped participants feel closer to God and elevated their moods. Consistent with the literature base, participants noted that that spiritual needs should indeed be addressed during a person's time at the hospital. Limitations of the study, areas for future investigation, and implications for clinical practice are provided.     

Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC): Standardisation of the principal subscale to assess awareness in patients with disorders of consciousness

Establishing valid and reliable measures for use with patients with disorders of consciousness (DOC) following profound brain injury is challenging due to a number of factors including the complex presentation of such patients and assessor variability. The auditory modality has been demonstrated to have greater sensitivity for detecting awareness in DOC patients. However, there are no measures developed to assess auditory responsiveness specifically. The objective of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the principal subscale of a music therapy assessment tool (MATADOC) developed for use with adult DOC patients. The subscale assesses behavioural domains essential for diagnosis of awareness. Twenty-one adult patients were recruited from a specialist rehabilitation unit. In a prospective study with repeated measures, internal consistency, inter-rater and test–retest reliability and dimensionality were examined. The five-item scale showed satisfactory internal reliability (α = .76) and a strong first principal component. Corrected item-total correlations were all > .45. Inter-rater intra-class correlations (ICCs) ranged from 0.65–1.00 and intra-rater ICCs from 0.77–0.90. Rasch analysis confirmed these impressions of a reliable, unidimensional and homogenous scale. Diagnostic outcomes had 100% agreement with a validated external reference standard. The results indicate that the MATADOC principal subscale provides a new behavioural measure that can contribute to interdisciplinary assessment of awareness with DOC patients.     

The complementary role of music therapy in the detection of awareness in disorders of consciousness: An audit of concurrent SMART and MATADOC assessments

In the behavioural assessment of disorders of consciousness (DOC), best practice is for several different assessment tools to be used to encourage a variety of different responses indicative of awareness. Anecdotal evidence suggests a range of musical stimuli may be particularly effective in eliciting responses to guide the assessment process, although comparative data regarding behavioural domains is lacking. This study examined 42 concurrent records of patients assessed using the Sensory Modality Assessment and Rehabilitation Technique (SMART), and the Music Therapy Assessment Tool for Awareness in Disorders of Consciousness (MATADOC) to explore the relationship between diagnosis and behavioural characteristics of the cohort. Whilst the two tools produced a high level of agreement in diagnostic outcome (Spearman Rho .80), divergent diagnosis and weaker correlations between behavioural response items highlight contrasting sensitivities of the tools. Whilst MATADOC has higher sensitivity within auditory and visual domains relative to SMART, SMART has higher sensitivity in the motor domain. The significant contribution of musical response items in MATADOC, and the tactile response item in SMART, indicates both tools provide unique behavioural data predictive of awareness. Multidisciplinary assessment using SMART and MATADOC provides complementary data contributing to a fuller understanding of a patient's level of awareness.     

Daily music exposure dose and hearing problems using personal listening devices in adolescents and young adults: A systematic review

Objective: This systematic review aimed to explore the evidence on whether the preferred listening levels (PLLs) and durations of music listening through personal listening devices (PLDs) in adolescents and young adults exceed the current recommended 100% daily noise dose; together with the impact on hearing and possible influential factors of such listening behaviours. Design: A systematic search was conducted using multiple online bibliographic databases. Study sample: The 26 studies were included on the basis of the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: The results showed that up to 58.2% of participants exceeded the 100% daily noise dose, particularly in the presence of background noise. Significantly positive correlations were found among background noise levels and mean PLLs, as well as the proportion of participants exceeding the 100% daily noise dose. Moreover, significantly worse hearing thresholds were found in PLD users using audiometry, and significantly poor results in otoacoustic emission (OAE), even in the participants with self-reported ‘normal hearing’. Conclusion: It is crucial to develop appropriate standards and safe recommendations for daily music exposure dose in future studies. Providing an essential guide and effective education to adolescents and young adults will help raise awareness, increase knowledge, and consequently change attitudes and listening habits.     

Rhythm perception: Speeding up or slowing down affects different subcomponents of the ERP P3 complex

The aim of this study was to investigate, by measuring the event related potential (ERP) P3 complex, whether the perception of small accelerations differs from that of small decelerations. Participants had to decide whether the last beat of a short sequence was presented 'too early' or 'too late'. Target beats were accelerated or decelerated with 0%, 2%, 5%, or 10%. Individuals differed in their capability to detect small tempo changes. We found that good responders were able to identify all tempo changes whereas poor responders were only able to identify large (10%) tempo changes. In addition, we found that tempo changes affected two subcomponents of the ERP P3 in good performers. Accelerations increased a late-P3 amplitude whereas decelerations increased an early-P3 amplitude. These results imply the principle possibility to measure differential P3 effects within one task. This is important for acquiring more refined knowledge concerning different subcomponents of the ERP P3 complex and the cognitive processes by which they are elicited.