Research and Me





It's that time again - time for the fourth blog challenge from Julie Palmieri and Serenade Designs. This one is going to be a challenge for me, one that I continue to struggle with even after 22 years of being a professional and continuous practice on this task. Here's the task:
This week’s challenge is to pick a current research article or chapter of a book that is closely related to your target audience and summarize it.

If you read this blog on a regular basis, first of all, THANK YOU! Secondly, you may have noticed that I try to do something like this on Sundays. But, for some reason, research has always been a bit of a disconnect for me. I know how to read it, how to interpret it, but it doesn't really connect with my day-to-day interactions with clients. As a result, I don't spend lots of time reading research in order to make my music therapy practice more strong, I read theoretical texts to strengthen my relationship with music and to become a better music therapist.

***NOTE: This topic is a bit difficult to write about because I have spent years wondering why I feel the way I feel about this. Other therapists seem to soak in all of the bits and pieces of each and every journal, making inferences, and changing what they do to reflect conclusions that come up in the journals. I don't. I don't do any of that. I read the articles that interest me and take away the conclusions that make sense to me, but I also never take anything as an absolute. I'm not sure why. This is my place to be honest about all things about music, therapy, and me, so there you go. I don't use research the way that others use research. Honesty, even if it reveals something that I'm not comfortable with...***
 

My chosen text is Music Therapy: A Fieldwork Primer, by Ronald M. Borczon (full citation at the end of this post).

I am a fan of practical suggestions for music therapists and this short textbook is full of good ideas for how to implement music therapy treatment with clients - almost any and all clients. My copy of this text has been used by me and by interns that haven't already had their own copies. I've added convenient tabs to the different chapters (something I do with all of my important textbooks) so I can flip to different topics quickly.

Borczon addresses topics such as attributes of a music therapist, how to act in the first interaction, and what we can learn from our clients. He also writes about talking, how to work with some difficult clients (some good tips in here, but some that I vehemently disagree with in terms of my own difficult client experiences), building your own style, documentation, and making supervision time relevant. There are lots of things contained in this little beauty of a book, and I am very glad that it is available as a resource. I wish it had been around 15 years earlier for my fieldwork.

I wonder how many internship directors and educational programs recommend this book to music therapy students. From some of the comments I've seen on Music Therapists Unite lately, there are some academic folks out there using the text, but not lots and lots. Ooh, this might be the foundation for an intern webinar for the next series...








Borczon, R.M. (2004). Music therapy: A fieldwork primer. Gilsum, NH: Barcelona.

Comments

  1. Janice Lindstrom, MA, MT-BC2:22 PM

    SMU students use this book for one of their classes.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Going on a Squeegee Hunt

One of the songs that I sang over and over and over again as a song leader in Girl Scouts was "Going on a Squeegee Hunt ." Now, you may be wondering what a "squeegee" is - good question! It is an imaginary creature that was probably invented by some obscure girl scout in Southern California many, MANY years ago! Anyway, similar to the traditional children's song of " Going on a Lion/Bear/Tiger Hunt ," the song takes you through a sequential process over, under, around, and through various obstacles towards a goal. Today, as I am sitting here writing, I am thinking about the poor squeegee being hunted. It is just in its cave, trying to do its squeegee things without interruption, when suddenly, BOOM! Some Girl Scout arrives to poke it! The poor squeegee does what it can - it jumps up and chases the Girl Scout all the way home!! This has not been a good work week. It is amazing how people will make mountains out of molehills. Here is the deal. I se...
Read more

Songwriting Sunday: Client Goals First and Foremost

Image
When I am writing music, I tend to do one of two things. I either start with a specific client in mind and write for that client's goals and objectives, or I start with an idea and let the idea grow regardless of the clients that I am serving at the time. I spend time with lots of hypothetical clients - thinking about the vast number of clients and their unique goals as I develop songs and therapeutic music experiences (TMEs). Today, though, I would like to start with the first focus - that of a specific client and his or her or their goals. Currently, I am sharing a wall with a class of students who are experiencing lots of life and school changes. Two students have transferred from residential care to home care and are now day students. One student is brand new to the classroom. Another student recently left the class. All of these changes have shifted the dynamics in the classroom group, and old behaviors of concern have reemerged as well as finding new behaviors to contribute. ...
Read more

Dear AMTA

Dear American Music Therapy Association: I am debating long and hard about remaining in this relationship. I have been in this relationship since college, and this is not a decision that I am taking lightly or without great cost.  I am not happy with what you are bringing to this relationship. Now, I have been a selfish partner over the past several years - mainly because I am not feeling like we share a common mission anymore. It is easy for me to place the blame on you, but I know that this is not all on me. I have tried to be invested in communication and support and understanding, but everyone comes to a time where enough is enough. I am trying very hard to decide if the benefits that you provide to me are worth the feelings that I have about where I think you and I are going. I am not sure that our destination is the same anymore, and this makes me sad. To be completely honest, I am only in this relationship these days for the music therapy interns. I don't think that is a hea...
Read more