Who are the Music Therapists in Mexico and How Do They Practice?

An Online Survey of Professionals and Students

Autores

  • Eugenia Hernandez-Ruiz School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Herbeger Institute of Design and the Arts, Arizona State University, USA https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9133-7642
  • Jill Sullivan School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Herbeger Institute of Design and the Arts, Arizona State University, USA

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15845/voices.v23i3.3785

Palavras-chave:

Mexico; emerging discipline; music therapy development

Resumo

Music therapy in Mexico has a limited history, with isolated efforts to establish the discipline, lack of university programs, and limited public awareness of the profession. Given the lack of research about music therapy in Mexico, we implemented a quantitative online survey to understand the status of music therapy practice, inviting any selfidentifying music therapists that had practiced between 1997 and 2022. A small sample of self-identified music therapists (N = 33, including practicing music therapists and students) responded to the survey. This sample seems representative of practitioners in the country. Educational level varied widely, from no university degree (in any discipline) to master’s degrees in music therapy, obtained in other countries. Most practitioners (n = 20) reported having no university degree in music therapy. According to our results, music therapists working in Mexico address similar needs and are in similar settings to other music therapists around the world. The most common music therapy approaches are a humanistic approach developed in Mexico and the Bonny Method of Guided Imagery and Music, with receptive methods most often employed. Young adults with mental health needs, with self or family funding, are the most common clientele. Costs, treatment duration, and session duration are comparable to other therapies in the country, but the income from this practice is very limited. About two thirds of practitioners engage in supervision, and most use several documentation methods. We consider that Mexico displays an emerging discipline, with practitioners showing optimism, commitment, and enthusiasm to the professionalization of music therapy in Mexico. Suggestions for organizational efforts and support from other countries are included.

Biografia do Autor

Eugenia Hernandez-Ruiz, School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Herbeger Institute of Design and the Arts, Arizona State University, USA

Eugenia Hernandez Ruiz, PhD, MT-BC is Assistant professor in music therapy at Arizona State University. Through her music therapy agency in Mexico, MusiCura, S.C., she provides clinical music therapy services, workshops and educational materials for parents, and supervision to other professionals. Her research interests include early intervention for children with autism, parent coaching, music and neuroscience, and music therapy student development. She has presented her work at regional, national, and international music therapy and autism conferences. Her research has been published in the Journal of Music Therapy, Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, Music Therapy Perspectives, Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, Psychology of Music, and Arts in Psychotherapy.

Jill Sullivan, School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Herbeger Institute of Design and the Arts, Arizona State University, USA

Dr. Jill Sullivan is Professor of Music Education in the School of Music, Dance and Theatre, at Arizona State University. Dr. Sullivan’s research agenda includes historical investigations of nineteenth- and twentieth-century women’s bands and music teacher education investigations–preservice, in-service, and university teacher educators. Her research articles appear in the following journals: Ala Breve American Music Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, Contributions to Music Education, Journal of Band Research, Journal of Historical Research in Music EducationJournal of Music Therapy, Journal of Research in Music Education, Music Educators Journal, Research and Issues in Music Education, and Teaching Music. Dr. Sullivan has chaired several national and state music education organizations’ committees and groups, including: national collegiate chair of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), the advisor for Arizona NAfME Collegiate, national chair of the Gender and Sexuality Special Research Interest Group of the National Association for Music Education, and the chair of Arizona College Music Educators. At ASU, she worked sixteen years as the chapter advisor for the ASU NAfME Collegiate Chapter, served as a faculty affiliate to Women & Gender Studies, was a member of the faculty senate, completed four years of service on the School of Music personnel committee, and currently serves on the HIDA personnel committee. In spring 2012, she was presented with the Outstanding Achievement and Contribution Award by the ASU Commission on the Status of Women.

Photo of the authors Hernandez-Ruiz and Sullivan

Publicado

2023-11-01

Como Citar

Hernandez-Ruiz, E., & Sullivan, J. (2023). Who are the Music Therapists in Mexico and How Do They Practice? An Online Survey of Professionals and Students. Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy, 23(3). https://doi.org/10.15845/voices.v23i3.3785

Edição

Seção

Research