Representing People in Music Therapy Research and Practice: A Balancing Act

Abstract

The process of representing people in academic writing and discussion is paradoxical. Drawing on our experiences of research in areas of child welfare and adult mental health, we consider whether the predominantly problem-focused language often used to describe and represent people in music therapy research and practice is congruent with the strengths-based way in which music therapists work. This article describes a "call to action" for music therapists to reflect on the language we use to represent the people we work and research with. We argue the need for a better balance in representing people in music therapy case studies, presentations and articles, by focusing on their strengths and resilience along with their challenges.

”Everything Changed When I Got Those Drums”: A Collaborative Case Reflection

“…Although they are typically written from the perspective of the researcher or practitioner, case studies are considered to provide a holistic representation of a certain time, event or therapeutic encounter that they deem to be significant. While the author may collate multiple perspectives from their interactions with the client or group being described in the case study, it is typically the author's responsibility to determine how the clients will be represented in the write up of the case (Fairchild & Bibb, 2016). Through co-authoring this article together, we have attempted to challenge and expand upon the traditional discourse by representing both of our perspectives as the therapist and the participant involved in music therapy.…”

“…These discussions acknowledged the idea that people come to music therapy with multiple stories and various reflections on their experiences (Fairchild & Bibb, 2016), and in this article we prioritised Malakai's decision in choosing which parts of his story he would like to tell. Therefore, what follows is an individualised and contextualised representation of a music therapist and an 11-year-old drummer's collaborative engagement together.…”

The Limits of Resilience and the Need for Resistance: Articulating the Role of Music Therapy With Young People Within a Shifting Trauma Paradigm

“…Researchers have demonstrated the unique role that music therapy can play with communities of young people who are marginalized along axes of race and class (Hadley and Yancy, 2012;Leonard, 2020;Thomas, 2020), and as an affirmative, political space for queer and gender diverse young people (Bain et al, 2016). Within this scholarship, there are calls to action to be mindful of the language and discourse surrounding clients' perceived vulnerabilities and risk (Fairchild and Bibb, 2016) and to strengthen our focus on the social conditions that construct and reinforce pathology (Baines, 2013). In an example of such, research by Norris (2019) explored the aesthetic experiences of Black music therapy clients with chronic pain, using critical race theory to articulate the historical, structural, and cultural context of chronic pain and health care disparities.…”

How We Talk when We Talk About Disabled Children and Their Families: An Invitation to Queer the Discourse

“…Rolvsjord and Hadley (2016) stated, "[o]ne of the crucial steps in contesting hegemony is learning to recognize one's relative position in the system and unmasking power relationships, whether they manifest in class oppression, sexism, racism, ableism, or heterosexism" (p. 477). Fairchild and Bibb (2016) published a call to action regarding the representation of people in music therapy research and practice. They asked whether the problem-focused language is in line with the strengthbased way music therapists work and argue for a better balance in discourse.…”