This specific music therapy method emphasises the ‘meeting’ between music and people. The central aim of social music therapy is to improve or develop social competency, increasing the person’s social understanding, skills, and functioning, and promoting social well-being. The focus is on forming relationships and interacting with others in a socially appropriate way. If people are limited in their relationships and social skills, relating to others can become a challenge and lead to social illness. During Social Music Therapy, the person experiences a fun way to re-learn and develop skills for communicating, contacting, relating to, and interacting with others, while developing the socially accepted levels of closeness and distance.
Benefits:
- Enhancing the Person’s Social Competency
- Developing Social Skills & Functioning
- Fostering Communication & Expression Skills
- Increasing the Person’s Self-awareness
- Learning Coping Strategies for:
- Communicating,
- Relating,
- Cooperating &
- Interacting with Others
- Introducing & Improving Social Understanding
Social Music Therapy is a group music therapy program that predominantly uses music-making activities such as improvising, dancing, singing, writing songs, and musical role-play. The registered music therapist supports individuals in a safe group setting to learn and practice new behavioural techniques to improve their social skills and functioning. Participants have the chance to share their social experiences and challenges with their peers. The tailored therapeutic musical activities will support individuals in exploring how they affect others, improving social and cooperative skills such as turn-taking, leading and following, compromising, and conflict resolution, discovering personal stressors and strengths, and learning self-management strategies. Participants will receive constructive feedback on their behavioural challenges and misperceptions.
Typically, the sessions are offered weekly for 45 minutes and are accommodated by at least one registered and highly trained music therapist, with a maximum of 8 participants. This program is well-suited to children and young people as well as adults.
