Effects of a music‐creation programme on the anxiety, self‐esteem, and quality of life of people with severe mental illness: A quasi‐experimental design

• Published in: International journal of mental health nursing 2018-06, Vol.27 (3), p.1066-1076
• Main Authors: Chang, Beh‐Huan, Chen, Bo‐Wei, Beckstead, Jason W., Yang, Chiu‐Yueh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anxiety; anxiety symptoms; Control groups; Day care centers; Group therapy; Intervention; Mental disorders; Music; Music therapy; music‐creation group; Nursing; Psychiatric-mental health nursing; Quality of life; Quasi-experimental methods; Rehabilitation; Sampling; Self esteem; severe mental illness
• ISSN: 1445-8330; 1447-0349
• DOI: 10.1111/inm.12414

Many studies have shown that music therapy improves patients' symptoms. However, interventions using music creation as their core await further development for patients with severe mental illness (SMI). The current study investigated the effect of a music‐creation programme on the anxiety, self‐esteem, and quality of life of patients with SMI. A quasi‐experimental design using convenience sampling was adopted to recruit patients with SMI from a psychiatric day care centre. Participants were grouped based on their willingness to undergo an intervention (26 patients in the experimental group and 23 patients in the control group). The control groups participated in conventional mental rehabilitation therapy activities. The experimental group participated in a music‐creation session for 90 min every week over a 32‐week period. The outcome indicators before and after the intervention were assessed using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM‐A), Rosenberg Self‐Esteem Scale (RSES), and World Health Organization Quality of Life‐BREF (WHOQOL‐BREF). Finally, the intervention effect was determined using generalized estimating equations (GEEs). After 32 weeks of intervention activities, the experimental group showed significant improvements in their HAM‐A total scores (P