depression, agitation, and violence. Therapies and management procedures other than pharmacological medications and physical restraint are desirable. Music therapy has been suggested as an intervention for patients experiencing anxiety, depression, agitation, and violence (Covington, 1997). A research study is proposed, the purpose of which will be to assess the feasibility of music therapy as an intervention for Alzheimer's patients.
The topic of the proposed study is important because the behavioral disturbances exhibited by Alzheimer's patients create a potential for physical harm to the patient, "social isolation and caregiver burnout" (Cole, 1995, p. 1). The topic of the proposed study is significant because the continuing growth of the elderly segment of the population may be expected to be accompanied by an increase in the numbers of Alzheimer's patients. If music therapy can be demonstrated to be an effective intervention for Alzheimer's patients, occupational therapists will be well placed to create the environments conducive to the delivery of such therapy, as well as delivering the therapy as a part of their service.
Literature relevant to the topic of the proposed research study is reviewed. The findings of the literature review are presented in discussions of music, music as therapy, and music as therapy for Alzheimer's patients.
Music is an orderly arrangement of sound consisting of melody, harmony, rhythm, tone, and pitch (Standley, 1986). Music has a personal meaning for each individual. Responses to music, thus, tend to vary by individual. Thus, music may have either a calming or stimulating effect (Kaempf & Amodei, 1989). The environment, a person's state of health, fatigue, and familiarity with and preference for or against a particular piece of music all influence the effects of music on an individual (Stevens, 1990).
Music therapy involves the use of music to produce changes in physiology, beh...