Dementia Australia Research Foundation funded songwriting project

This project, funded by the Hazel Hawke Dementia Australia Research Foundation Grant, examined the feasibility of group therapeutic songwriting with people with dementia and their family caregivers. Participants attended 6 weekly group songwriting sessions, completed pre and post intervention assessment of health and wellbeing outcomes, and participated in post-intervention interviews. Effect sizes suggested that group therapeutic songwriting may have beneficial impacts on depression for people with dementia and quality of life for family caregivers. Participants valued therapeutic songwriting as a new, creative and stimulating experience that enabled connection with self and others and led to feelings of pride and achievement.

Publications

Clark, I.N., Stretton-Smith, P.A., Baker, F.A., Lee, Y-E. C., and Tamplin, J. (2020). “It’s feasible to write a song”: A feasibility study examining group therapeutic songwriting for people living with dementia and their family caregivers. Frontiers in Psychology, 11:1951. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01951

Media Stories

2018

Dr Imogen Clark is awarded the Hazel Hawke Research Grant by Dementia Australia