Verbal affordances of active and receptive music therapy methods in major depressive disorder and schizophrenia-spectrum disorder

Abstract

Previous research on active and receptive music therapy methods mostly reports on response to musical processes and therapeutic impact. Preceding such interests, our study examined qualitatively the verbal affordances during a course of eight individual music therapy sessions among twenty participants with a major depressive disorder or a schizophrenia-spectrum psychotic disorder. Audio-video recordings of 131 sessions were transcribed verbatim and subjected to thematic analysis, following which comparisons for music therapy method and diagnostic group were made.

The themes that emerged from the thematic analysis, reflect the content of verbal responses to participation in active music making, receptive music listening and client-therapist dialogue. These themes were i) not to feel; ii) to do or not to do; iii) grappling with the desired future; iv) hurt and fear of undesirable outcomes; v) sadness, brokenness and futility; vi) anger, trust and vulnerability; vii) desire for connection with and affection of others; viii) barricaded from being (in the) present; ix) tensing and un-tensing; x) personal relating to one’s musical expression; xi) reflections on the music and music making in therapy, xii) resilience in courage and xiii) invigoration and liberation.

The emerging verbal affordances showed responses within a therapeutic relationship that express inter- and intra-personal connection, increased motivation, grappling with difficulty, emotional expression, and the reclamation of energy, spontaneity and resilience.