Читать книгу The Creative Arts in Counseling - Samuel Gladding T., Samuel T. Gladding - Страница 53

The beat of drums often has an effect on people as they go about their daily routines. Find some drum music and see how it affects you and what emotions surface as you hear it.

In reminiscence or in present-oriented social groups, music may be the key to encouraging discussion of past or present feelings and thoughts about events, such as learning, romance, loss, and family life (Duffey et al., 2006/2007). Music is typically played that revolves around a particular theme, such as the importance of home or family. This activity usually takes place after the group as a whole has warmed up by participating in a brief sing-along of familiar songs that includes their own accompaniment of clapping and foot tapping. This approach is effective at helping reduce depressive symptoms in older people (ages 73–94 years) with dementia (Ashida, 2000) and has value in other older group settings too.

In a maximum-participation group, members select their own music and theme. In less democratic groups, most of the selections are made by the leaders with particular foci in mind. Songs such as Jerry Butler’s “Only the Strong Survive” as well as Barbra Streisand’s “The Way We Were” and early American ballads like “My Old Kentucky Home” are used to set a tone and a mood that encourage talk and interaction after the singing has stopped.

Music may also be used with older adults to help them achieve better physical functioning. Rhythmic music, for example, acts as a stimulus for helping older patients with gait disorders improve the flow of their walk. In this process, the beat of the music serves as a cue for individuals in anticipating a desired rate of movement. In a brief 8-week study, Segall (2017) found other positive physical results of group singing with a population between 81 and 94 years old. Noting that reduced respiratory function can impact older adults’ nutritional intake, exercise endurance, and social engagement, Segall set up an 8-week group singing intervention. At the end of the intervention, she found that group singing meaningfully contributed to the respiratory health of this sedentary but healthy older adult population. The virtues of group singing as described by Segall are its cost-effectiveness; enjoyability; and value as a method of treating respiratory, voice, and swallowing function issues.