Perceptions of music therapy amongst academicians and healthcare providers in universities and university-affiliated health services in New Zealand

Abstract

The areas of music therapy effects in health services are varied, including emotional, physical, social, creative, spiritual, and environmental functions. The purpose of this study was to examine awareness of music therapy and its potential positive effects amongst academicians and healthcare providers in universities and university-affiliated health services in Dunedin, Otago, Aotearoa New Zealand. A cross-sectional design was employed. Data were collected using an email questionnaire via simple random sampling (Dec 2021 to June 2022). The questionnaires (Cronbach’s alpha, 0.97) asked about the effects of music therapy by focusing on emotional, physical, social, creative, spiritual, and environmental domains. Ninety-nine responses were collected. Most participants were academians (54.5%), with clinicians (21.2%), others (2o.2%), and a small number of allied health practitioners (4%). Among the various effects of music therapy, respondents endorsed a low-to-moderate level of awareness of music therapy effects on emotional, physical, social, creative, spiritual, and environmental roles. The study indicates a need to develop various programmes or educational courses that can introduce music therapy effects to professionals to ensure their patients and other stakeholders have the right to receive diverse interventions, including therapeutic music, to promote their health.