Preparing new research projects on music and public health, I would like to know what fellow researchers might think about the topic, and whether you might recommend a research methodology and resoruces.
I am defending my dissertation on the use of participatory drumming and speech-language delayed children. I think your topic has merit and can go in many directions. You can take a public helath issue and read the literature on how music therapy assists others with similar public health issues and then take it one step further...pick a target group that has not yet been observed or treated. Then take music therapy as your theoretical underpinning and use it on which to base your projects. Addiction can be treated with music therapy as an adkjunct to other therapies. Drums have helped; what other instrument might be used? Addicts can be broken down into alcohol or drugs, dual diagnosis, if it is drugs, what is the drug of choice? Methodology should be mixed so that you get not only the statistical data but also the perceptions of others. Resources--AA protects anonymity but you can get permission by assuring each participant that they will be assigned a random code and that their answers will be used in the aggregate only. Get a valid and reliable survey and then start writing!
Check out the recent Thessaloniki ESCOM Proceedings. Millions of options.
Most important is your personal background. What are your strength ?
A lot of the current research in neuropsychology on how music affects the brain supports various premises that essentially support the benefits of music educationally, emotionally and in healing from injury and illness. Much of this is relevant to public health, especially in the education sector.
Go to IMNF, Institute for Music and Neurologic Function as sthey are the leaders in Music Therapy and have received awards and grants for their research and clinical application.
Dr. Concetta Tomaino is the music therapist who helped found the IMNF, the self-proclaimed "leaders in music therapy."
I am looking at music and public health; I have been working on theoretical underpinnings and integrating it with some of my own research. I have been considering both music and music therapy within the public health context. I am happy to talk more if you like, Lars Ole. I am linking my clinical work in music therapy with my research work in public health at UNSW Medicine, Australia; and also some additional studies. We need to be clear to differentiate between public health and community medicine - they each have a different focus.
Thank you, all, for interesting comments and suggestions. Over the last year, I have gone a different way - the nomothetic social science way, in collaboration with the Dnaish National Institute of Public Health.
14.000 Danes have answered questions about their musical background, behaviors, and beliefs - as part of a general public health study. I am working on the analysis now - it is really exciting and looks very promising.
- Badges
- Science topic