In this article, Meagan Hunt described how she considered Action Research to be the most effective method to use in researching young refugees. She concluded that the larger focal points of the study needed to be the empowerment, preservation of personal feelings/dignity, and cultural expressions of the young refugees, rather than the mere collection of research data. She felt it important to, "ensure that the clients, who are being affected by the practical knowledge being produced, are able to realize their rights and choices in the process."
Action Research addresses the following fundamental principles: encourage and stimulate communication, democratic dialogue and development; democratic participation; practical knowledge; empowerment of the people; an emancipatory form of research; and providing choices.
Music therapy, when combined with the Action Research principles, provides an environment where the young refugees feel empowered to express their feeling and experience a sense of personal and community belonging. Music therapy interventions that have effectively been used with young refugees include improvisation, song singing, music and movement, and songwriting.
I strongly support the position of this article in the use of Action Research as the method of research used to study young refugees. In my prior ministry experience, of working with people who have experienced severe trauma, I have noted that the depth of their pain is best expressed when they feel that they are being heard, understood, and their personal dignity and culture are being preserved. Many times we, in the serving community, tend to believe that we have all of the answers and solutions to the problems of others.
As music therapy is applied with Action Research principles, these young refugees will be able to respond with empowerment, solutions for their future, and healing through the caring therapy of music. To know how people hurt, and their own understanding to personal and community recovery, is far more important than a more sterile approach to gathering research data for the sake of data.
p class="first">I appreciated this article primarily for two aspects of the work, an introduction to Action Research and for discussion of the topic of music therapy work with the refugee population. Both of these topics are not presented in plethora of articles in music therapy research and it was interesting and enjoyable to expand my knowledge on both topics.
Action Research, as this is the first I have heard of it, seems to open up new ways to explore research and set different parameters for our study into the benefits and goals of music therapy. Reframing the way that we look at things can change the perspective enough to gain new insight. One of the most important things in the particular case study was how important the democratic element of the therapy was emphasized and how that related to the goals of the specific population in question. It makes sense to structure the therapy around the needs of the clients and if a more democratic process of therapy empowers the disempowered, it seems like the ideal way to work with this population.
The refugee and displaced population is an important one to consider. It was especially helpful to have a summary of the difficulties (and how it affects the clients to refer to their difficulties as "problems") of the refugee population and the various techniques often used in the work. The incorporation of refugees into the community seems integral for healing and I think exploring the role of the community in the healing process is necessary for common difficulties that refugees experience. Many topics in this article were interesting to explore and I hope to see more research on these issues in the near future.