Name:Rachael, Finnerty

School/Affiliation:McMaster University & Music Therapy Academy

Co-Authors:Dr. Darlene Ciuffetelli Parker (Brock University, Faculty of Education), Dr. Laurel Trainor (McMaster University, Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour)

Virtual or In-person:In-person

Short Bio:

Dr. Rachael Finnerty is credentialed as a music therapist and is registered as psychotherapist. She has 25 years of experience working with a diversity of age groups, and diagnoses in private practice and hospital settings, receiving the YWCA woman of distinction award in 2015 in health care. Rachael brought 2 music therapy courses to McMaster University in 2010 and currently educates over 5000 students each academic year about music therapy. To provide further education to the community and to healthcare professionals Rachael founded the Music Therapy Academy. Rachael is grateful for the opportunities she has had to collaborate with Drs. Laurel Trainor and Darlene Ciuffetelli on her research interests of music therapy to support proactive wellness.

Abstract:

Support for proactive mental health is imperative to reduce the number of post-secondary students experiencing mental health issues. In recognition of the intensity and rigour of Brock University’s Teacher Education Program, the Faculty of Education at Brock University collaborated with McMaster University. This study builds on McMaster’s published study showing the effectiveness of group music therapy to reduce McMaster undergraduate students’ stress and anxiety. In this current randomized controlled study, concurrent teacher education students (n=40) were randomly assigned to six-weeks of music therapy or ‘student life as usual’. Data were collected from standardized psychometric tools, hair samples for cortisol as a biomarker of stress, as well as narrative inquiry focus groups, introducing a new complementary method and data collection set from prior studies. As per the McMaster study; (1)Brock students completed a survey that indicated their interest in participating in group music therapy if it was offered on campus, (2) significant reductions in stress and anxiety measures were observed (with the exception of the cortisol results of which the Brock study was underpowered), and (3) themes from the narrative inquiry focus groups included students’ anxiety about practice teaching and the use of music to reduce stress and as a coping strategy. The results also confirmed student interest in group music therapy as an option for proactive wellness on campus. This study also promotes strategies for graduating healthy teachers in the field during the current teacher shortage crisis, as well as a proactive wellness campus culture.