Orchestral-Dialogues: Accepting Self, Accepting Others -- Translating Deep Listening Skills to Transformative Dialogue Skills

Orchestral Dialogues: Accepting Self, Accepting Others (Orchestral Dialogues) was a pilot project with BuildaBridge International (BaB), an arts-intervention organization based in Philadelphia, PA. Fourteen children, ages 9 - 14 years, participated during the program's pilot year, 2016-2017. The Orchestral Dialogues project was a community music therapy (CoMT) endeavor that sought to teach both deep listening and transformative dialogue skills through participation in private lessons, rehearsals and dialogue workshops. This study asked the question, how do deep listening skills developed through the orchestral process relate to transformative dialogue skills in children? Ethnographic methods were employed to answer the research question including participant observations, facilitation of a focus group, ongoing informal conversations with participants, their families and staff, and a review of archival data. Data analysis incorporated artistic responses to theme development for the purposes of clarification. The themes identified were 1) adult modeling, 2) role playing, 3) orchestra as analogy for components of dialogue, and 4) community building through collaboration The findings showed that the children, though only in the initial five months of their learning process, understood the basic concepts of deep listening skills (awareness of self, awareness of others, awareness of music) and could translate these to transformative dialogue skills (self-reflexivity, self-expression, responsibility, affirmation, co-creation of a new reality). The findings showed the children described the skills of deep listening and transformative dialogue using musical language and concepts. Although they demonstrated an understanding of the skills, it was evident they required more time to implement the skills in their daily lives. The results of this study contributed to interdisciplinary research in CoMT and conflict transformation literature.Ph.D., Creative Arts in Therapy -- Drexel University, 201

The impact of a clinician's mourning on music therapy treatment

The purpose of this study is to explore how a clinician’s mourning impacts music therapy practice. The design of the research included interviewing music therapists and data analysis using grounded theory. Subjects included nine music therapists who reported meeting the inclusion criteria. Subjects answered questions regarding their work with patients who have died; how the music therapists mourned that death and the impact that death had on their continued therapeutic relationships. There is currently limited research detailing the impact of a clinicians’ mourning on their continued clinical work. Death is a natural process that closes the life cycle; therefore, it behooves therapists to begin to consider their own responses and fantasies about death and the impact of this on their future therapy relationships. There are an ever-increasing number of music therapists entering the area of hospice care according to The American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) Member Sourcebook. Through developing research in this area future music therapists working with this population may have additional resources to integrate within their practice. The data may assist in the development of practice models that seek to reduce stress and burnout for clinicians in this area. Seven general categories of therapists’ experience of meaning in music and mourning emerged from the data analysis: Connections, Prophylactic Use of Music, Kinesthetic Experiences, Boundaries, Rituals, Closure, Musical Beliefs and Concepts, and Clinical Impact. Across the board, subjects reported a desire to maintain connections with others to keep from being isolated in their work.M.A., Creative Arts Therapy -- Drexel University, 200

Learning by Doing: Student Experiences in a Mixed Methods Research Course

Aim/Purpose The purpose of this paper is to detail the experiential learning processes of an 11-week doctoral-level intermediate mixed methods research (MMR) course in which student-researchers conceptualized and implemented an MMR study to apply theoretical and methodological learning in a practical manner. Our aim is to emphasize the value of an applied MMR course for improved student learning and curriculum planning for faculty by highlighting meaningful insights on study design, data integration, team collaboration, and the challenges and opportunities involved in project execution within a time-limited academic course. Background MMR courses are increasingly being integrated into graduate programs, yet few offer intermediate or advanced courses that go beyond introductory topics and engage students in applied learning. Furthermore, most articles on MMR courses are written from the instructor perspective and not from the student perspective. Methodology This article is organized by each week of the course curriculum, and the output of the research project, couched within reflections of the applied process, is presented. While this paper is grounded in an experiential reflection of learning, the research project itself is referred to frequently to help elucidate and capture this learning in a systematic way. The applied study employed an explanatory sequential mixed methods design to examine career satisfaction and career preference changes over time in doctoral candidates and graduates. Contribution This paper contributes to higher education by providing a student-led exemplar of applied learning in MMR pedagogy for doctoral students irrespective of discipline and research topic. It provides a sample research project, executed start to finish with a guiding blueprint that can be adapted by faculty and students in various academic departments, within a quarter or semester long course. Findings Ultimately, this course led to increased confidence and preparation to conduct interdisciplinary mixed methods research. Unique to mixed methods research, the areas in which we witnessed the most growth included developing mixed methods research questions, choosing a design based on these questions, and engaging in data integration. Recommendations for Practitioners We provide the following recommendations to instructors interested in developing intermediate- or advanced-level MMR courses: a) obtain input from students on what they are most interested in learning during course conceptualization or early on in implementation; b) consider that a great deal of time outside of the classroom may need to be dedicated to the class project, which may impact the feasibility and successful execution of an experiential course; and c) sufficient class time is dedicated to data integration from quantitative and qualitative inputs. Recommendation for Researchers Researchers interested in further examining learning and proficiency garnered from MMR and other research courses may benefit from including students as co-researchers. In addition, engaging in systematic qualitative research on student and professor experiences in learning and teaching MMR courses could highlight further areas for course refinement and topics for future research. Impact on Society Given the increasing prevalence of MMR being included in research funding announcements as a preferred methodology, it is imperative to rigorously train researchers in mixed methods research at varying levels of advancement (i.e., introductory, intermediate, and advanced). Future Research Our small explanatory sequential mixed methods study began as a class project, yet highlighted areas that could be studied further for doctoral candidates and graduates in clinically oriented fields, such as learning what types or qualities of training and mentorship may yield more career preparedness and satisfaction