Psychology
Rock of Ages: Personalized Music Playlists for Nursing Home Residents with Dementia
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Location
Indianapolis, IN
Subject Area
Psychology
Start Date
13-4-2018 3:00 PM
End Date
13-4-2018 4:15 PM
Sponsor
Tara Lineweaver (Butler University), Tim Brimmer (Butler University)
Description
We evaluated whether a music program involving personalized music playlists for older adults with dementia had an effect on their behavior, cognition, and affect. We hypothesized that the music program would positively affect older adults with dementia. Seventy-nine older adults with dementia (ages 62-102) living in a local nursing home participated in our study. Before implementing a music program, we completed baseline assessments of agitation, cognition, and mood. We built a personalized playlist of resident-preferred music with a focus on selections from their late teens to early 20s. During the six-month intervention we also completed mid-study and post-study assessments using the same measures. On average, participants completed more listening sessions from baseline to mid-study than from mid-study to post-study. Consistent with expectations, agitation decreased from baseline to mid-study, but it unexpectedly increased from mid- to post-study, paralleling the increase and decrease in music listening. We found significant improvements in the number and frequency of neuropsychiatric symptoms. For affect, we found a near significant decrease in depressive symptoms reported by staff. Both neuropsychiatric symptoms and mood showed an improvement from baseline to mid-study and a stabilization from mid- to post-study. Cognitive abilities were steady across the six month intervention, despite residents having neurodegenerative disorders. Together, our results demonstrate a link between personalized music listening and decreased symptomatology in nursing home residents with dementia. Our results indicate that music listening programs like ours have the potential to improve the quality of life of older adults with dementia living in long-term care settings.
Rock of Ages: Personalized Music Playlists for Nursing Home Residents with Dementia
Indianapolis, IN
We evaluated whether a music program involving personalized music playlists for older adults with dementia had an effect on their behavior, cognition, and affect. We hypothesized that the music program would positively affect older adults with dementia. Seventy-nine older adults with dementia (ages 62-102) living in a local nursing home participated in our study. Before implementing a music program, we completed baseline assessments of agitation, cognition, and mood. We built a personalized playlist of resident-preferred music with a focus on selections from their late teens to early 20s. During the six-month intervention we also completed mid-study and post-study assessments using the same measures. On average, participants completed more listening sessions from baseline to mid-study than from mid-study to post-study. Consistent with expectations, agitation decreased from baseline to mid-study, but it unexpectedly increased from mid- to post-study, paralleling the increase and decrease in music listening. We found significant improvements in the number and frequency of neuropsychiatric symptoms. For affect, we found a near significant decrease in depressive symptoms reported by staff. Both neuropsychiatric symptoms and mood showed an improvement from baseline to mid-study and a stabilization from mid- to post-study. Cognitive abilities were steady across the six month intervention, despite residents having neurodegenerative disorders. Together, our results demonstrate a link between personalized music listening and decreased symptomatology in nursing home residents with dementia. Our results indicate that music listening programs like ours have the potential to improve the quality of life of older adults with dementia living in long-term care settings.