Music as a link between body and emotion

Abstract: In her dissertation, the author describes the therapeutic process which she conducted over a two year period in a rehabilitative hospital school setting with four girls ages 6-7, diagnosed with spina bifida and muscular atrophy. The author asserts that music, in all its ramifications, is a discipline which affects man's physical being as well as his mental and emotional state. Music therapy, therefore, can develop effective communication between these two elements in a handicapped individual. The author bases his premise on various psychological theories which refer to mother-infant dynamics such as those expounded by Winnicott, Bolby and Erikson as well as the pathology of young children in therapy. The use of group music therapy models emphasizing the correlation between the physiological and psychological effects of music is described. The musical elements of the therapeutic process are also described. In her assessment of the therapeutic program, the author concludes that regular sessions with the same therapist over an extended period contribute much to the efficacy of the therapy as a whole.

Keyword(s): Music-influence, emotional-responses, body-concept, hospital, children, rehabilitation-programs, physical-disabilities, Erikson,Erik H.,Bolby, Johann,Winnicott, Donald Woods

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