The effects of group music therapy on mood states and cohesiveness in adult oncology patients

Abstract

The purpose of the current investigation was to examine the efficacy of a music therapy protocol on mood states and levels of group cohesiveness in adult oncology patients. Eleven oncology patients in 2 groups (ages 30 to 84 years) took part in the study over a 10-week period of time (10 participants completed the study). During that period, participants took part in 8 music therapy sessions consisting of 2 types of interventions: (a) 4 "music making" sessions (where the mechanism for change included the process of making music) and (b) 4 "music responding" sessions (where the mechanism included the process of responding to music). The two types of music therapy sessions and their effectiveness on improving mood states and group cohesiveness were examined. The Profile of Mood States-Short Form (POMS-SF) was used to assess changes in participants' mood states. A content analysis, attendance records, and a questionnaire were used to assess levels of group cohesiveness. Results showed significant improvement in mood state scores (from presession levels to postsessions levels) after involvement in all music therapy sessions. Similar significant findings were found within each of the "music making" and "music responding" conditions but no differences were found when comparisons were made between those conditions. No statistically significant effects were found with respect to group cohesiveness measures. Study implications and future research directions are discussed.