Abstract
This mixed methods study reports levels of work satisfaction of music therapists working in the United States. A total of 1,154 board-certified music therapists completed a 28-question survey focused on their workplace, work, and professional development experiences, along with their levels of stress, burnout, and happiness. Two open-ended questions asked respondents to reflect on their identities as music therapists. Composite work satisfaction scores were subsequently divided into quartiles, characterizing high, moderate, and low work satisfaction groups. Music therapists reporting high work satisfaction indicated significantly higher levels of positive agreement with questions regarding work satisfaction than did music therapists reporting moderate or low work satisfaction. Work satisfaction was also significantly associated with stress, burnout, and happiness. The profiles of music therapists reporting high, moderate, and low work satisfaction were further connected to their identities as music therapists, illuminating the characteristics of music therapists who are thriving, those who are moderately satisfied at work, and those who are struggling. These profiles provide insights into the occupational wellbeing of the profession.
Highlights
This article continues a line of research in which we examined the work lives of music therapists in the United States
In addition to examining differences in responses to categories of survey questions, we analyzed written responses to two questions regarding how respondents thought about being a music therapist (“When I think about being a music therapist, the first thing that comes to mind is...”) and their identities as a music therapist (“When I think about my identity as a music therapist, the first thing that comes to mind is...”)
At the end of the survey, they were invited to provide written responses to two open-ended questions: “When I think about being a music therapist, the first thing that comes to mind is...” and “When I think about my identity as a music therapist, the first thing that comes to mind is....”
Summary
Of the 109 early-career music therapists (with less than 1 year of experience) who provided salary data, only 62 (56.8%) reported full-time salaries While these music therapists may have chosen to work part-time, responses to related survey questions suggest otherwise. When asked to rate their degree of satisfaction with their salary, only 17.5% were completely satisfied and 36.9% somewhat satisfied, while 27.7% were somewhat dissatisfied and 8.7% completely dissatisfied This suggests that, on the whole, some music therapists have concerns about their salaries, and the extent to which this impacts their overall work experience is worthy of further examination
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