A comparison of group performance and song familiarity on cued recall tasks with older adults

Journal/Book: Journal of Music Therapy. 1991; 28: 2-13.

Abstract: 37 elderly participants in music or activity programming at 3 typical music therapy delivery sites for older adults completed cued recall tasks using popular songs from the 1940s and 1950s. Group A (retirement center residents) listened to 6 song segments (full assessment), while Group B (adult day-care participants) and Group C (nursing home residents) completed an abbreviated assessment composed of 3 of those 6 songs. Recall performance was not significantly different between songs designated familiar and those that were considered less familiar. Significant differences were found between group responses for each of the 3 songs used in the abbreviated assessment. Analysis indicated that factors such as tempo, length of seconds per word, and total number of words might be more closely associated with lyric recall than the relative familiarity of the song selection.

Note: cued recall of familiar vs unfamiliar old popular songs; elderly responding in groups vs individually; implications for music therapy

Keyword(s): Memory ; music ; familiarity ; group dynamics; aged ; cues ; recall learning; music therapy; adulthood

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