World of sound – and access to one´s own self: a technique in receptive music therapy with depressed patients

Abstract

Background: The shown receptive music therapy treatment is part of the Ph.D. project “Design of a manual-structured music-therapy treatment for depressed patients in a clinical setting” at the Hochschule fur Musik und Theater Hamburg, tutored by Prof. Dr Eckhard Weymann, Hamburg (2nd tutor Prof. Dr Thomas Stegemann, Vienna).Objective: The clinical treatment is more and more influenced by economic needs. The given project focuses on the challenge to develop ideal conditions for the unfolding of music therapy effective factors concerning the treatment of depression.Methods: The point of reference is the hypothesis that depression and suicidality are culturally socialized mental behaviors. Therefore, special conditions for the self-experience during music perception are sought, by means of which culturally destructive attitudes and self-destructive learned opinions about oneself are neutralized.Discussion: This kind of treatment of depression assumes that the patient participates in an active way from the cl...