An Investigation of Music Therapists' Experiences of Verbal Dialogue in Music Therapy Sessions

Siobhán Nelligan,Tríona Mccaffrey

doi:10.15845/voices.v20i1.2868

Abstract

This study presents a preliminary exploration of music therapists’ first-hand experiences of engaging in verbal dialogue with clients in their clinical practice. To the authors’ knowledge no previous studies have examined the role of verbal dialogue from the first-hand perspectives of experienced professionals working in the field. Three individual interviews were conducted with three accredited Irish music therapists. Four central themes emerged as a result of thematic content analysis: content and function of verbal dialogue, the use of verbal dialogue may contribute to professional ambiguity, returning to the music, and the dyadic relationship between musical and verbal exchange. The findings revealed verbal dialogue to be a topic of interest for the participants in this study, one which stimulated meaningful reflections about clinical practice. The implications for professional identity and clinical practice which arose distinguished verbal dialogue as a potential area for further research and professional discourse within the wider music therapy community. Suggestions were made for additional areas of learning that may assist in preparing trainee and newly-qualified music therapists for potentially challenging verbal encounters with clients.

Highlights

This paper presents an exploratory investigation of issues relating to music therapists’ understandings of verbal dialogue and the perceived benefits and challenges of engaging in verbal dialogue with clients
The following themes emerged during analysis across each of the interviews: content and function of verbal dialogue, the use of verbal dialogue may contribute to professional ambiguity, returning to the music, and the dyadic relationship between verbal and musical exchange
The use of verbal dialogue may contribute to professional ambiguity emerged as a compelling individual theme, issues relating to professionalism maintained such a strong presence throughout each interview that the researcher found it challenging to consider it in complete isolation from other themes

Summary

Introduction

This paper presents an exploratory investigation of issues relating to music therapists’ understandings of verbal dialogue and the perceived benefits and challenges of engaging in verbal dialogue with clients. Certain theoretical approaches to music therapy place a greater emphasis on the use of verbal dialogue than others. Psychodynamic approaches have a strong verbal element (Priestley, 1994), while creative music therapy places greater emphasis on musical interaction (Nordoff, Robbins, & Marcus, 2007). Garred (2006) maintained that it is likely that the primary motivation for engaging with music therapy stems from the inherent qualities of music itself. This makes music therapy an accessible medium to clients for whom verbal therapies are unsuitable, be this through disability or other barriers to engagement

Results

Discussion

Conclusion