Camrin Guyette

Mrs.Crist
English IV
24 Sept. 2015

Essential Question: How is music therapy used to help people with mental disorders?
Working Thesis: Music therapy is used to help people with mental disorders as a way for patients
to express themselves without any judgement.
Refined Thesis: Music therapy is used as a form of treatment to help people with mental
disorders to express themselves in a way that will allow them to be free of any judgement.

Annotated Bibliography
Thompson, William Forde, and Gottfried Schlaug. "The Healing Power of Music." Scientific
American Mind 26.2 (2015): 32. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 17 Sept. 2015.
This article describes how music therapy plays an important role in treating disorders of
the body and mind. One form of music therapy that is used on patients is from the use of
audiobooks, which uses a calming voice to relax the patient. Another form of therapy used is
through the use of instruments, which allow the patient to express themselves in a way that they
would not be judged on. This article will help me support my thesis statement because it gives
examples of how music therapy is used in multiple ways to help treat certain disorders in
patients.

Music Therapy Helps Beat Depression. Therapy Today 25.9 (2014): 6. Academic
Search Complete. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.

This article describes a study that was performed at Queens University in Ireland that
showed that music therapy is effective in reducing depression found in children and teens who
have behavioral and emotional issues. The children got to choose from a set of activities, such as:
songwriting, drumming and storytelling in the rhythm of the music to see if this would be
effective in the process.. This will help my thesis by supporting evidence of how children in
teens had used an activity of their choice in order to have music therapy be effective in the option
they decided to participate in.

Wilkinson, Irene G. Let There Be Music: Making A Case For Using Music In Schools To
Enhance Relationships And Readiness For Learning. Canadian Music Educator / Musicien
Educateur Au Canada 55.1 (2013): 28-31. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Sept.
2015
This article states that it is believed that listening to certain types of music can help
reduce mental problems, such as depression, stress, and anxiety. It has also been proven that
music can improve a persons mood. This article also states its reasoning on why schools should
allow students to have music in class. The author states that music could be used to help motivate
a student to work harder instead of being distracted and wandering off in their own mind. This
article would help me support my thesis by helping me state reasons on how music could be used
in a way that would help people work harder than be lazy and not work at all.