A Comparison of Singing, Vibrotactile and Nonvibrotactile Instrumental Playing Responses in Severely Regressed Persons with Dementia of the Alzheimer's Type

The purpose of this study was to compare the durations of vibrotactile response, nonvibrotactile response, and singing in a SampIe of severely regressed persons with dementia of the Alzheimer's type. Six male subjects who ranged in age from 62 to 73 years participated individually in a four-session pilot test and 10 subsequent experimental testing sessions. Each session was videotaped and the 10 test sessions were later evaluated for the durations of (a) vibrotactile response, defined as drum playing with the drum held in the subject's lap; (b) nonvibrotactile response, defined as drum playing with the drum held in front of the subject; and (c) singing. A t test revealed a significant difference between durations of vibrotactile and nonvibrotactile responses (p < .05). Mean scores showed the vibrotactile responses were of longer duration that the nonvibrotactile responses. In addition, only one subject of the six sang, and his singing participation decreased as his dementia progressed. A t test computed to compare the difference between his durations of singing and composite drum playing was significant (p < .0005). Mean scores for this subject indicated longer durations for drum playing than for singing responses. Implications for music therapy practice are discussed.