Voices ResourcesA website for the worldwide community around the journal Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of presenting on a panel at the National Conference of the American Music Therapy Association with 10 other co-editors of Voices, representing five countries: Brian Abrams, Jane Edwards, Carolyn Kenny, Lucanne Magill, Katrina McFerran, Rune Rolvsjord, Brynjulf Stige, Lisa Summer, Guylaine Vaillancourt, and Barbara Wheeler. The panel session was entitled Voices and the Open Access Revolution: Culture, Ethics, and Authenticity. As I was listening to the other panellists, I found myself in awe for the collective wisdom at this (quite long!) conference table and the deep care for authentic exchange of ideas.

A couple of things stood out to me as I was listening to the contributions by the panellists and the audience members. First, Lisa Summer introduced us to the forerunner of Voices: the Music Therapy International Report. The goal of the Report, published annually from 1983 to 1996, was to stimulate international discourse. Lisa shared that back then manuscripts were submitted and edits were exchanged via fax or snail mail. Her statement that a fax machine was considered advanced technology evoked, needless to say, a good amount of laughter in the audience. Her presentation provided a wonderful backdrop for evaluating the technology that supports Voices today as an open access journal. Music therapists, and others, from around the world can readily access the journal upon its publication. They are no longer limited to professional discourse within their own country or region. Instead, they have 24/7 access to clinical publications, research reports, and other scholarly works from around the globe. In addition, comments and questions from the audience showed that music therapists actively use Voices to find out information about the status of music therapy in specific countries and to locate music therapists in those countries. In contrast to information exchange via fax, manuscript submissions and reviews happen now online and this comes with many time-saving advantages for authors, reviewers, and editors. The founders of the Music Therapy International Report had a vision of international exchange of theories, practice, and research in mind when they first started the Report. Never did they anticipate that this international journal would develop into an open access journal which is now accessed by approximately 12,000 music therapists, health professionals, and lay people per month worldwide! What an amazing journey this journal has made.

Carolyn Kenny and Brian Abrams then shared their thoughts concerning authenticity, critique, and political diplomacy. As Carolyn pointed out: Voices welcomes manuscripts that dare to push the envelope and are ‘out-of- the-ordinary’. It is our hope that Voices is providing a safe place for authors to share their authentic self and for healthy critique to be voiced. At the same time, the balance of authenticity, ethics, and political diplomacy is not always easily achieved. One audience member, for example, shared that although she would like to publish her ideas in Voices, she was concerned that her authentic expression could backfire on her given the open access format of Voices. There is indeed a certain level of risk-taking involved with publishing in an open access journal. Employers can readily access the publication, and clients may come across the publication when trying to find out more information about their therapist online. As the attendee pointed out, some of these “unintended readers” may not be ready to read arguments or ideas that ‘push the envelope’. I devoted my previous column on E-professionalism, including a discussion about the impact of Facebook use on therapists’ perceived professionalism, but I had not yet thought about the unique ethical dilemmas presented by publishing in an open access journal.

Finally, I was very pleased to hear the input of student audience members. Several shared their experience of contributing a response to the moderated discussion forum. As you may know, I am the co-editor, together with Thomas Wosh, of this forum. Each semester, between midterms and finals, we receive a lot of contributions from US students because some professors have made it a requirement to submit a response to a Voice’s article. Although I thoroughly enjoy reading these student contributions (many include interesting clinical experiences, personal stories, or newly found perspectives, and some are brave enough to challenge the author with intriguing questions), I have wondered at times how much students get out of this ‘required assignment’. Do they quickly find an interesting article, write the response and get it over with? Or does this assignment make them explore the journal, get excited about the many voices represented, and then search for an essay or interview that truly resonates with them. The student testimonies at this conference session help me gained additional insights into the value of these class requirements. Several students reported that this had been a most enriching experience for them, especially because for most, this was the first publication of a response in a journal. This is indeed an exciting accomplishment for a student and possibly a first step towards a future publication.

After the panel session, the Voices co-editors enjoyed a wonderful meal. And this was truly the highlight of the conference for me as it provided us with an opportunity to get to know each other better. I have had many professional e-mail communications with these co-editors, but several of them I did not know well. To gather around a meal and share an evening of personal stories and wisdom was invaluable for me. The panel presentation, the dialogue with the audience, and these stories-around-the-table left me energized and more committed than ever to the mission of Voices.

How to cite this page

Bradt, Joke (2010). In the beginning, there was a fax machine. Voices Resources. Retrieved January 09, 2015, from http://testvoices.uib.no/community/?q=fortnightly-columns/2010-beginning-there-was-fax-machine