Music Therapy with
Autism Spectrum Disorders:
Review of Research
Southwest Ohio Regional Autism Advisory Council
2009 Summer Institute

Mimi Sinclair,
MM, MT-BC
• Director, Music Therapy Services
• 513-474-6064
• msinclair@cinci.rr.com
• www.music-therapy-cincinnati.com

Music therapy is:
• a behavioral science and
• an aesthetic experience
• which uses music as a tool
• to make positive changes in behavior.

Uses of music
• As a reinforcer, contingent on desired behavior
• As a physical structure for the learning activity
primarily though its components of rhythm,
melody, and tempo

Uses of music
• As a background for learning, a complimentary
stimulus
• As a carrier of information: skills, concepts,
and general information

Uses of music
• As a reflection of skills or processes to be
learned, pairing nonmusical concepts within
the structure of the music
• As a music learning experience for leisure and
aesthetic experience

An Analysis of Music Therapy
Program Goals and Outcomes
for Clients with Diagnoses on
the Autism Spectrum.
• Ronna Kaplan and A. Louise Steele
• Journal of Music Therapy, 2005

Subjects
• 40 music therapy clients receiving services over
two years in community music school or group
home setting
• Age range 2-49 years

Session types
• Individual
• Partner
• Small Group
• Large Group
• Peer Model
• Combination

Goal Areas
• Behavioral/psychosocial
• Language/communication
• Perceptual/motor
• Cognitive
• Musical

Interventions
• Interactive instrument play
• Musical instrument instruction
• Interactive singing
• Instrument choice-making
• Song choice-making

Session format
• Activity-based
• Client-led/Shadow
• Ensemble/Combo
• Lesson-based

Outcomes
• Initial goals set at 25% change from baseline.
• 100% clients attained goal in one year or less

Outcomes
• Intermediate goals set at 25% change from
level achieved in initial phase.
• 77% met goal within 1 year or less

Generalization
• Parents and caregivers surveyed at end of year
• 100% subjects generalized targeted behaviors
outside of music setting occasionally or
frequently

Music in Intervention for
Children and Adolescents
with Autism:
A Meta-Analysis
• Jennifer Whipple
• Journal of Music Therapy, 2004

Meta-analysis allows for greater
confidence in conclusions
about the efficacy of treatment.

10 studies met criteria for
inclusion
• Only 3 are published. Others are dissertations
and theses
• Skill areas addressed: social behaviors,
communication skills, cognitive skills

Uses of music
• Sung instructions
• Background music
• Music as reinforcer
• Music as structure

Target Behaviors
• Challenging behaviors
• Task completion/accuracy
• Self-stimulatory behavior
• Eye contact
• Vocabulary comprehension

Target Behaviors
• Shape identification
• Verbalization
• Out-of-seat
• Social acknowledgement
• Spontaneous speech

Results
• “All music intervention has been effective.”
• All reviewed use has a relatively high effect.

The Effects of Signed and
Spoken Words Taught with
Music on Sign and
Speech Imitation by
Children with Autism
• Evelyn M. Buday
• Journal of Music Therapy, 1995

Subjects
• 10 children from Chicago Public Schools
• Mild-severe autism
• Ages 4-9 years

Treatment Conditions
• Signs taught in conjunction with music and
speech
• Signs taught in conjunction with rhythm and
speech

Design
• Seen individually 4 consecutive days, 5 trials
each day, for two weeks
• Music condition one week, rhythm condition
the next

Dependent variables
• Correct signing
• Correct speaking
• 14 words

Results
• Average number of signs correctly imitated
during music condition was significantly higher
• Average number of words spoken correctly
during music condition was significantly higher

Musically Adapted Social
Stories to Modify Behaviors
in Students with Autism:
Four Case Studies
• Mike D. Brownell
• Journal of Music Therapy, 2002

Subjects
• 4 elementary school students in Iowa
• Ages 6-9 years

Conditions
• Baseline
• Reading social story
• Singing social story

Target behaviors
• TV talk
• Following directions
• Using a quiet voice

Results
• Both conditions significantly improved target
behaviors in a all 4 cases
• Frequency of negative behavior occurred least
often during music, but not significant

The Effect of Background
Music and Song Texts on the
Emotional Understanding of
Children with Autism
• June Katagari
• Journal of Music Therapy, 2009

Subjects
• 12 students attending school in Japan
• Primary diagnosis of autism
• Ages 9-15 years

Treatment conditions
• No teaching of emotions
• Teaching emotions with verbal instruction only
• Verbal teaching with background music
• Singing songs about emotion

Emotions taught
• Happiness
• Sadness
• Anger
• Fear

Dependent variables
• Recognition of facial expression from photos
• Recognition of facial expression from drawings

Dependent variables
• Identification of situation-based emotions
suggested in a set of pictures
• Facial expression of emotions by participants

Results
• All conditions resulted in gains
• Background music was most effective
• Singing songs was next
• Verbal instruction was lowest