http://www.mi-pro.co.uk/index.…l-college-of-music/020940
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Drumming can have a positive impact on mental health, significantly reducing depression and anxiety, according to a new study by the Royal College of Music.
The study found that a ten-week programme of group drumming can reduce depression by up to 38 per cent and anxiety by up to 20 per cent.
The research is the first of its kind to bring together psychological and biological results to demonstrate how making music benefits mental health services users. Furthermore, the benefits were still evident three months later, indicating that drumming could be an economical and effective intervention for mental health service users.
Carried out among 76 mental health service users in London across two studies, the research involved participants taking part in six and ten-week programmes of group drumming workshops led by a professional drummer and supported by students from the Royal College of Music. Participants completed validated questionnaires measuring depression, anxiety, stress and mental wellbeing, while saliva samples were analysed to test their biological responses.
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Key findings showed:
• Significant improvements in depression, anxiety, mental wellbeing and social resilience were found in the drumming group but not the control group.
* Improvements in depression reached 24 per cent by week six and 38 per cent by week ten.
* Improvements in anxiety reached nine per cent by week six and 20 per cent by week ten.
* Improvements in social resilience reached 16 per cent by week six and 23 per cent by week ten.
* Improvements in mental wellbeing reached eight per cent by week six and 16 per cent by week ten.
Aaron Williamon, Professor of Performance Science at the Royal College of Music, commented: “Research into the psychological and biological benefits of psychosocial interventions for conditions such as anxiety and depression has increased markedly in the past decade. Our study shows that making music can be a powerful tool for promoting mental health and contributes to a wider evidence base around music and wellbeing.”
Interviews with some participants revealed that drumming provided a ‘powerful form of expression and communication, and that the shared experience of drumming in a group facilitated feelings of belonging, acceptance, safety and care’.
There were also benefits in making new social contacts and learning new skills as part of an inclusive and relaxed musical activity. .
The Royal College of Music is currently discussing whether similar music-making programmes could support other mental health conditions, such as postnatal depression.
Its recent study was the first project of the new Centre for Performance Science, a Royal College of Music partnership with Imperial College London, and carried out as part of ‘Creative Practice as Mutual Recovery’, a project funded by the UK’s Arts and Humanities Research Council. "
