THE USE OF MUSIC TO PROMOTE MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE
Lindqvist Gatti, Birgitta
The use of music to promote mental health and well-being among young people
Examination paper in psychiatric care, 15 Credit Points. Program of Nurse Specialist in Mental Health Care. Advanced level. Malmoe University: Department of Nursing, 2010.
Introduction: Music is an important part in the daily life of young people.
During a very long time and in many different cultures, music has been used in many ways. The importance of music for the human being is considered to be sub cultural, cultural and universal. Although adolescents share their interest for music with each other, music preferences can be different because of factors such as ethnicity, youth culture, personality and social identity. Different kinds of music satisfy separate physical and psychological needs. The Aim of the present systematic literature review was to describe how the influence of music can affect the mental health and well-being among young people. The aim was also to describe how the music affects people physically and mentally and finally describe whether the music can help the individual to identify, regulate and express emotions. Result: The music affects people through complicated processes in the brain, for example through varied activities in hippocampus and amygdala. Different musical stimuli, such as harmonious or dissonant melodies, activate these structures in different ways. Various emotions can be mediated through and evoked by music, and can be used as a tool in identifying, regulating, strengthen and expressing emotions. The music has different purposes depending on in which context the individual is listening to or making music. The music can meet emotional needs, social needs, strengthen the identity and increase creativity and imaginativeness. The music is considered to prevent illness and promote health and well-being. Different kinds of music activities are able to make a satisfying outcome but it is the self-selected music that gives the best effect. The choice of music is controlled by, among other things, personal mood and social context. Conclusion: Different kinds of music activities and genres are able to give the individual a possibility to, with regard to personal history and preferences, in different ways use the music in purpose to strengthen the sense of health and well-being. Music in psychiatric nursing is recommended as an important complementary intervention to promote health and well-being. From a nursing perspective, more studies about music interventions are needed.Key Word: Children, emotions, coping strategies, music, mental health, adolescents, young adults, nursing, well-being.