Master of Music (MM), Ohio University, 2017, Music Therapy (Fine Arts)

This phenomenological inquiry examined the experience of group music therapy for women recovering from addictions. Nine, twice-weekly 60- to 90-minute music therapy sessions were provided for 16 women at an all-female inpatient treatment facility with an average three-month treatment length located in rural Ohio. The women were Caucasian, mothers, and ranged in age from 18 to mid-40s. Heroin and methamphetamines were the most commonly cited drugs of abuse among group members. Following the treatment sequence, 11 women participated in voluntary semi-structured interviews about the music therapy experience and three interviews were chosen for phenomenological microanalysis. The analysis yielded four primary themes: music forms connections, desirable intrapersonal shifts, beneficial qualities of music therapy sessions, and music therapy's impact on treatment and recovery. The outcomes from this study align with suggestions for successful addictions treatment for women and indicate that music therapy may be a beneficial treatment across the span of the recovery journey.

Committee: Laura Brown PhD (Advisor) Subjects: Alternative Medicine; Mental Health; Music; Personal Relationships; Psychology; Public Health; Rehabilitation; Social Research; Spirituality; Therapy; Welfare; Womens Studies