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Title: Ableism and colonialism in international music therapy service-learning settings
Abstract: Music therapy settings are often marked by multiple power hierarchies, in which music therapists hold privileged identities in areas such as race, disability, language, and class in relation to clients who may carry multiple oppressed identities. In international ser...
Show moreMusic therapy settings are often marked by multiple power hierarchies, in which music therapists hold privileged identities in areas such as race, disability, language, and class in relation to clients who may carry multiple oppressed identities. In international service-learning settings, these dualities can be even more pronounced. As international service-learning projects market themselves to young music therapists and students, they emphasize these projects’ ability to accelerate music therapists’ advancement in the profession. However, analysis of visual and written discourse can reveal subtler and more insidious consequences of such projects, particularly in the ways they uphold colonial and ableist paradigms. In this paper, I will outline some foundational understandings regarding Indigenous studies, Disability studies, “voluntourism,” and the relevance of representation. I will then analyze publicly available photos and text from four international music therapy service-learning projects, using Actor-Network Theory to identify colonial and ableist themes. The analyses will demonstrate that these experiences align and prepare young music therapists for broader music therapy practice mainly by reinforcing music therapy’s deeply colonial and ableist foundations. Music therapy identity in these images is white, settler, nondisabled, and aligned with Western music and culture; client identity is Indigenous, colonized, Disabled, and represented without markers of local cultural resources. Beyond identity, these images reveal relational patterns that align with colonial and ableist tropes. As represented in these images and texts, music therapists purportedly give, help, act, distribute, teach, and transform, whereas clients receive, wait, accept, assimilate, and “overcome.” The representations are not merely neutral agents that reveal existing dynamics; they also perpetuate problematic notions of music therapy as an assimilative and charitable agent, enacted by active “helpers” upon passive “sufferers.” They both accentuate and perpetuate assumptions of Black and colonized people as needy or deficient, positioning Western music therapists conversely as helpful and sufficient. In analyzing and interpreting these representations, I will approach the following questions: How much does music therapist identity depend on the construction of a needy other? In representing ourselves as helpers, how do music therapists unwittingly create or emphasize deficits in clients?
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Year Issued: 2021

Author: Gilman, Vee
Sub-title: A critical discourse analysis

Title: Embodied Speech Through Song
Abstract: Through queer autoethnography (i.e., queerly telling stories), I have explored the beginning development of a gender affirming voicework method within music therapy, informed by my personal experiences of seeking a more affirming voice for myself as a nonbinary trans...
Show moreThrough queer autoethnography (i.e., queerly telling stories), I have explored the beginning development of a gender affirming voicework method within music therapy, informed by my personal experiences of seeking a more affirming voice for myself as a nonbinary trans person, specifically doing this through my singing voice. This was further informed by literature from the fields of speech-language pathology, vocal pedagogy, and music therapy. This method will potentially provide a uniquely holistic space, working with the physical voice in terms of working on gendered behavioral changes and healthy vocal habits; the psychological voice in terms of supporting the emotional relationship that a person has with their voice, body, and Self; and the body in terms of encouraging relaxation and groundedness as well as working with the ways a person expresses/relates to their voice, body, and Self. In attempts to ignite a conversation around the possibilities of gender-based work within music therapy for trans, nonbinary, and cis individuals, I share my experiences of engaging in gender affirming voicework. Although this voicework is likely relevant to all individuals, it is perhaps more pertinent for trans and nonbinary folk. This is reflected throughout my autoethnography.
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Year Issued: 2019

Author: Gumble, Maevon
Sub-title: A Queer Autoethnographic Exploration of Gender Affirming Voicework in Music Therapy

Title: Exploring music therapists’ attitudes towards disability and sexuality
Year Issued: 2024

Abstract: Music therapy has historically not addressed sex as a topic within clinical practice despite its clinical relevance to the human experience. As a field that works with an abundance of disabled clients who are often harmed by social and systemic infantilization which ...
Show moreMusic therapy has historically not addressed sex as a topic within clinical practice despite its clinical relevance to the human experience. As a field that works with an abundance of disabled clients who are often harmed by social and systemic infantilization which prevents them from access to sexual knowledge, it could be argued that music therapists should be trained to provide basic levels of support to this community in particular given the high level of need. Nevertheless, there are many questions and conflicting ideas around music therapy scope of practice as it pertains to these topics, barriers to education and clinical implementation and viable solutions to this gap in knowledge as a profession. While the music therapy literature has seen an increase in disability justice research in recent years, it offers little to nothing on the topic of engaging in clinically relevant discussion of sex, and most certainly not within the context of disability. This study aimed to examine music therapists’ educational and clinical experiences on engaging in sexual topics with disabled clients, as well as measuring personal feelings of comfort in engaging in these conversations. It was conducted via an anonymous survey intended to collect quantitative and qualitative data from a wide array of music therapists. Data was collected and analyzed according to an objectivist framework and qualitative data in particular was analyzed for common themes. Results indicate a lack of training and education in the facilitation of such topics, and the majority of participants reported complex feelings on the various intersecting layers of these conversations. While many reported feeling discomfort in relation to this topic, so too did many indicate a desire to reflect more critically and intentionally on the subject. It is hoped that this study’s data will serve as an impetus for our field to shift cultural and education practices to better prepare therapists for these conversations on these topics.
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Author: Miller, Francesca

Title: Recognizing and Navigating Dynamics of Power in the Therapeutic Relationship
Abstract: This critical thematic analysis study aims to explore how music therapists identify and navigate the complex dynamics of power in therapeutic relationships. Current literature illustrates how various theoretical lens’ view and address power structures in therapy, poi...
Show moreThis critical thematic analysis study aims to explore how music therapists identify and navigate the complex dynamics of power in therapeutic relationships. Current literature illustrates how various theoretical lens’ view and address power structures in therapy, pointing to a multifaceted understanding of power in therapy. Participants (n=6) were selected purposively to represent music therapists who had access to varying degrees of power in the therapeutic context as a result of their identity markers. They each completed a 45-60 minute interview that included questions related to sociocultural identity, understanding of power, dynamics of power in music therapy, how they navigate power dynamics, and reflexive practice. The interviews were coded and analyzed, then grouped into themes. Six themes and 36 sub themes emerged in the data: dynamics of power (inherent, multifaceted, intersectional and contextual, reciprocal, relational, omnipresent, systemic, privilege, access), associations with power (negative, neutral, positive), therapist responsibilities (safety of client, supervision and accountability, reflexivity, acuity, humility, curiosity, supportive, music as container, honesty), external expectations (therapist as expert, parent and guardian expectations, pressure to comply, loss of power, idealization of therapist), missed opportunities (advocacy, connection, humanizing therapist), and strategies of navigating power (challenging ideology, contesting hegemony, unmasking power, overcoming alienation, learning liberation, reclaiming epistemic agency, practicing democracy). From the findings, it is evident that music therapists may hold largely negative perceptions of power and could benefit from a more nuanced understanding as they address power imbalances in therapeutic contexts.
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Year Issued: 2024

Author: O'Sullivan, Emily
Sub-title: Music Therapists’ Perspectives

Title: Sexism and cisgenderism in music therapy spaces
Abstract: This narrative inquiry examined the experience of gender microaggressions in the music therapy field. Gender microaggressions are defined as everyday assaults, insults, or invalidations that occur towards persons with marginalized gender identities (including trans/c...
Show moreThis narrative inquiry examined the experience of gender microaggressions in the music therapy field. Gender microaggressions are defined as everyday assaults, insults, or invalidations that occur towards persons with marginalized gender identities (including trans/cis women, trans men, and nonbinary persons) (Sue et al., 2007). As music therapy academic, clinical, and professional spaces are microcosms for larger sociopolitical contexts, music therapists are prone to enacting microaggressions through verbal, non-verbal, and musical means. Microaggressions accumulate throughout a person’s lifetime to negatively impact a person’s health and well-being. In this narrative inquiry, semi-structured interviews occurred with eight participant music therapists to examine their experiences of gender microaggressions in music therapy. Results demonstrated that gender microaggressions manifest in a variety of ways and enactors include music therapy colleagues, presenters, internship directors, educators, and clients. Five themes with 33 sub-themes were found: qualities of microaggressions (cumulative, intersectional, subtle, systemic), impact of incident (gender dysphoria, hurt, indignant, internalization, invalidated, lingering, questioning, regret, shame, shocked, stereotype threat, tired, tokenized, visceral reaction), survival tactics (avoidance, caregiving for the enactor, forgiveness, intellectualizing, minimizing, processing, self-protection, vigilance), interpersonal dynamics (impact on relationship, professional boundaries, power dynamics, response of enactor), and gender in music therapy (feeling affirmed, need for dialogue and support, perceived advantage of cis men). From these findings, it is clear that there is a need for music therapists to develop greater awareness of ways in which they enact gender microaggressions and to create more spaces for music therapists with marginalized gender identities to process these incidents.
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Year Issued: 2019

Author: Kristen McSorley
Sub-title: An exploration of gender microaggressions experienced by music therapists

Title: Unmasking Alienation in the Lived Experiences of Songwriters
Year Issued: 2023

Abstract: This critical narrative inquiry explores autobiographical narratives of songwriters, calling attention to experiences of alienation. Silver’s (2018) “wheel of alienation” is the conceptual framework for alienation used in this study: a sociological model synthesizing...
Show moreThis critical narrative inquiry explores autobiographical narratives of songwriters, calling attention to experiences of alienation. Silver’s (2018) “wheel of alienation” is the conceptual framework for alienation used in this study: a sociological model synthesizing critical theory (Benjamin, 1935/2008; Brookfield, 2004; Fromm, 1941; Horkheimer & Adorno, 1944/2020), existentialism (Howie, 2014; Jaeggi, 2014; Rae, 2010) and interpretivist sociology broadly (McIntyre, 2008, 2011, 2019; Scarborough, 2017; Silver, 2018). The author provides this multi-factor scaffolding both to identify non-dominant narratives by applying multiple theoretical perspectives (Bruner, 1991; Hadley, 2013b; Morgan, 2002; White, 2007), and to put forth alienation, the “cutting off” of the ability to act on one’s own accord within a given social context, as a useful concept in understanding experiences of agency, authenticity, growth and integration–or lack thereof–in our current pluralistic world (Jaeggi, 2014; Kalekin-Fishman & Langman, 2015; Rae, 2010; Silver, 2018). The author interviewed four songwriters about experiences of alienation that emerge within their process of inspiration, drafting, collaboration, performance, recording, touring, marketing, and so on (Cobb, 2016; Long & Barber, 2017; McIntyre, 2008, 2011, 2019). Four themes emerged as salient in the narrative data: interaction with normative expectations, agentic actions, alienation experiences, and communal experiences, which were then separated into subthemes such as discovery of creative agency, split identity, alienation from family, and external/internal ego fixations. Considerations for community music therapy are discussed, as well as how institutions and individuals might foster ecological conditions for more meaningful and sustainable songwriting experiences.
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Author: Schachner, Kay