A Psychotherapeutic Classification of Music Therapy Practices: A Continuum of Procedures

This article categorizes music therapy practice into three levels: music therapy as an activity therapy, insight music therapy with reeducative goals, and insight music therapy with reconstructive goals. Music therapy as an activity therapy includes much of music therapy as traditionally practiced, with the goals achieved primarily through the use of therapeutic activities. In insight music therapy with reeducative goals, the music experience is generally used as a stimulus for verbalization, with verbal processing which leads to insight, which can then help the client to change his behavior. In insight music therapy with reconstructive goals, music therapy techniques are utilized to elicit unconscious material which is then worked through in an effort to achieve reorganization of the personality. Examples of the use of music therapy in these three ways are provided, as well as related classifications from the music therapy and psychotherapy literature. It is suggested that these, or related categories, can help make communication about the work of the music therapist more clear, which will aid both treatment and education.