Data Collection Plan for Music Therapy Project Improving Quality of Life of Schizophrenic Patients

Due to the stigmatization associated with mental illness, people with schizophrenia are often isolated. Research has shown that 58% of schizophrenics are socially withdrawn (Bloch et al., 2009, p.90). As a result, more and more research is being conducted on alternative treatments for people diagnosed with schizophrenia. Music therapy has created an entirely new platform and is currently used to bridge the gap between isolation and participation. Hence, a 12-week music therapy project (one-hour session) consisting of a blend of improvisation, singing, and songwriting is used to reduce social anxiety and improve the quality of life of participants involved.

Critical variables are displayed in Table 1 in accordance with the WHOQOL-BREF Quality of Life Scale, the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (SIAS), and the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). WHOQoL-BREF is a 16-item questionnaire that has been psychometrically evaluated toward the quality of life assessment. Quality of life is based on four domains including the environment, physical health, psychological health, and interpersonal relationships (Bloch et al., 2009, p.90). The questions are based on a 5 point Likert scale and reflect the individual perceptions of the quality of life of people with schizophrenia (Evert et al., 2000, p.28). Improvements in personal relations and enjoyment of life would be measured accordingly.

SIAS is a 20-item questionnaire. The focus pertains to concerns about being with other people in a social environment (Clark & Mattick, 1998, p.256). Since a higher score is an indication of greater social anxiety, the goal after the music therapy project is to reduce each participants’ previous score by as much as possible (< 3). The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) is a 53-item self-report scale, which detects psychiatric symptoms from 9 dimensions including Somatization, Obsession-Compulsion, Interpersonal Sensitivity, Depression, Anxiety, Hostility, Phobic Anxiety, Paranoid Ideation, and Psychoticism (Castle et al., 2000, p.810). SIAS and BSI are based on a 5-point scale ranging from 0 (not at all) to 4 (extremely).

(Table 1 omitted for preview. Available via download)

References

Bloch, S., Castle, D., Grocke, D. (2009). The effect of group music therapy on quality of life for participants living with a severe and enduring mental illness. Journal of Music Therapy, 46(2), 90-104.

Castle, D., Drummond, P., Halperin S., & Nathan, P. (2000). A cognitive-behavioural, group-based intervention for social anxiety in schizophrenia. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 34, 809-13.

Clarke, J.C., & Mattick, R.P. (1998). Development and validation of measures of social phobia, scrutiny, fear and social interaction anxiety. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36, 455-470.

Dahle, T., Gold, C., Heldal, T.O., & Wigram T. (2005). Music therapy for schizophrenia or schizophrenia-like illnesses. Cochrane Database of Systematic Review, 3.

Evert, H., Hawthorne, G., Herrman, H., Murphy, B., & Pinzone, T. (2000). Australian WHOQOL instruments: User’s manual and interpretation guide. Melbourne: Australian WHOQOL Field Study Center.