An Examination of Therapeutic Approaches Employed by Music Therapists Servicing Children and Teens with Behavior Disorders

• Other Authors: Crump, Jessica (authoraut)
• Format: Others
• Language: English; English
• Published: Florida State University
• Subjects: Music
• Online Access: http://purl.flvc.org/fsu/fd/FSU_migr_etd-2974

The purpose of this study was to examine the therapeutic approaches employed by music therapists servicing children and teens with behavior disorders. The therapeutic approaches were examined in relation to: (a) the frequency of approaches (behavioral, analytical, Nordoff-Robbins, etc.) employed by music therapists, (b) the degree to which interventions employed by music therapists followed the research literature on evidence-based practice with children and teens who have behavior disorders, (c) the degree to which therapists' approaches were influenced by their academic training (approach stressed by their university program) and by their professional identity (behaviorist, Nordoff-Robbins practitioner, etc.), and (d) the degree to which therapists' approaches influenced the goals they addressed, and (e) the degree to which therapists' approaches influenced the interventions they used with children and teens who have behavior disorders. Board-certified music therapists from the 2009 American Music Therapy Association Sourcebook who worked with children and teens with behavior disorders served as participants (N=114). Participants completed a 28-item questionnaire that addressed the five research questions and included items related to participants' demographic information, their education, therapeutic approaches, music therapy experiences, behavior disorder caseloads, music interventions, and non-music techniques. Results indicated that (1) the most frequently utilized approach was behavioral, followed closely by eclectic, (2) 79.40% of music therapists continued to follow the approach stressed by their university programs, (3) participants' professional approaches did not influence the social goals the music therapists addressed, though approaches may have influenced the other goals they addressed with children and teens who have behavior disorders, (4) participants in the present study employed therapeutic interventions that followed the research literature on effective practices with children and teens who have behavior disorders, and they also employed interventions that have yet to be studied by researchers, and (5) participants' therapeutic approaches influenced the interventions they employed with children and teens who have behavior disorders. These findings highlight the relationship between participants' education, their professional identity, and their approaches to servicing children and teens with behavior disorders. Additionally, results from this study identify interventions used by music therapists that follow the research literature on effective practices with children and teens who have behavior disorders; also identified are interventions that have yet to be examined by researchers. === A Thesis submitted to the College of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Music. === Summer Semester, 2010. === July 2, 2010. === Neurological, Orff, Creative, Behavioral, Evidence-Based Practice, Professional Identity, Theoretical Identity, Music Therapy, Children, Teens, Behavior Disorders, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Therapeutic Approaches === Includes bibliographical references. === Alice-Ann Darrow, Professor Directing Thesis; Jayne M. Standley, Committee Member; Dianne Gregory, Committee Member.