I found the article Listening to Music: Similarities and Differences Between Normal and Schizophrenic People by Clarice Moura Costa very intriguing. As stated, past research that has found that persons with schizophrenia distort meanings of words. Costa's question, “Could it be different when music is used instead of words?” is unique and addresses a curiosity that I have had for several years. I have always had a fascination with abnormal psychology, specifically schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. Although, I can’t say if there was one event or one person that sparked my curiosity, I can say that it came to fruition during several advanced psychology classes in high school.
After reading the entire article, the results allowed me to make a connection in my personal life that I had not fully contemplated before. I entered college as a Psychology major. After my first semester, one of my close friends* began exhibiting signs and symptoms of a psychotic disorder. She went to a psychiatrist and after several sessions was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Because of our relationship, I had the unique opportunity to take a back seat and observe her from the onset of her disorder. It took a number of months to discover the right medication for her and during this time, she often resorted to listening to music or playing her instrument. I began to notice that she would listen to specific pieces of recorded music when she was in certain moods. Her choices seemed odd to me and didn't always correlate. I was unable to understand the connection and she never offered an explanation. When I hear Beethoven’s 9th I feel joy, however she would listen to this piece whenever she felt angry. I started to wonder if the difference in perception was due to our different personalities or her diagnosis. As I spent more time with her during this trying period, I also noticed that when she was agitated or upset there were a few specific songs that would calm her.
Costa’s results were two-fold for me. First, they showed that perceptions of emotions were very similar between both groups. While my friend and I tended to have differing emotions and moods when listening to familiar pieces, I wonder if our perceptions would be similar if we were listening to something unfamiliar. Second, her results showed that upon listening to the different musical segments, persons with schizophrenia actually made more references to personal experiences and remembrances and fewer references to fantasies. That made me wonder if my friend listened to those specific pieces of music when she was agitated was because it helped her remember some special event or feeling from her past. After reading this article, I called my friend to ask permission to share her story. We have had several in-depth conversations in which some questions have been answered and more have been posed. Our talks have opened her eyes to music therapy. With medication and traditional psychotherapy she has been maintaining her disorder steadily for almost a year now, and she is considering speaking with a music therapist to augment her treatment. She has helped me learn, grow and experience first hand one of my deepest interests and in turn I am able to show her that her love of music can be an effective form of treatment for her.
*I received permission from my friend to share this story. Several facts have been changed for confidentiality.
Response to Listening to Music: Similarities and Differences Between Normal and Schizophrenic People
Clarice Moura Costa’s article, Listening to Music: Similarities and Differences Between Normal and Schizophrenic People compares the reactions and emotions from a group of people with schizophrenia to a group of people who have normal functioning. Four different pieces of music were played for both groups and the participants were asked to respond “freely about what they had listened to”. Costa states, “Our findings suggest that there are similarities between normal and schizophrenic persons in relation to the experience of musical listening. The perception of musical elements, fantasies and mainly emotions related to the segments were similar.”
My first experience with a psychiatric population was in high school, when I volunteered at a local psychiatric hospital. I observed and assisted the music therapist a few times a week for a semester as part of an in-school community service program. I can still remember my first day, scared to death, with no idea what to expect. It can seem so scary to visit a new population for the first time, but after a few days the experience begins to feel more comfortable.
If it weren’t for my interest in music therapy, I probably would have never set foot inside a psychiatric hospital. It just seems like a scary place for young high school girl to be. What I learned in those 5 months surpassed anything I could have ever imagined.
I learned that the people in the psychiatric hospital are real people. They have families, relationships, dreams, wishes, needs, and fears. I learned that there was nothing to be afraid of. Certainly there were precautions and emergency response trainings to take, but in general, I found myself more and more comfortable. The relationship that the clients built with the music therapist, the music, and the other clients was amazing. I saw so many people rise up and defeat their challenges and overcome many of their disabilities.
I think that it’s important that people are aware of the psychiatric population. It seems like many people would have the same reaction I did that first day: scared and anxious. They may not even know what kinds of interventions go on at a psychiatric hospital. Bringing awareness to our culture about this population is important in helping improve the lives of people with psychiatric problems. For example, people might be more willing to vote for funding for a government run psychiatric hospital if they know what it is all about. I think studies like the one discussed in this article are great not only for people in the music and therapy worlds, but for the general public as well. I hope that more research can be done in the future comparing the effects of music with people with psychiatric problems to normal functioning people. This will help people realize, that although there are many differences, people with psychiatric problems are human and still have many things in common with you and me.