When added to standard care, music therapy helps people with schizophrenia improve their global state, mental state and social functioning.
Using musical experiences and the relationships that develop through them can be a dynamic force for change. Since the 1950s therapists have claimed that this means of communication and expression can help people with serious mental illness develop relationships and address issues they can’t cope with using words alone.
To assess whether there is strong evidence to support this claim, a tam of Cochrane Review Authors looked at four studies that met their stringent inclusion criteria. Each study compared standard care with standard care augmented by music therapy. The studies looked for differences in outcome 1-3 months after treatment. The number of sessions that patients went to ranged from 7.5 to 78.
In all four studies, patients receiving music therapy did better than those getting standard care alone.
The Cochrane authors say that the specific techniques of music therapy, which include musical improvisation and discussion of personal issues related to the musical process, require specialised training for the therapist. But there is no need for the client to have any particular musical ability or prior experience.
The effects of music therapy seemed to be strongly linked to the number of therapy sessions. “In order to benefit from music therapy, a person needs to participate in regular sessions over a few months,” says Dr Christian Gold who works in the Faculty of Health Studies at Sogn og Fjordane University College, Sandane, Norway.