Monday, October 24, 2011

Heavy Metal Music and Depression in Teens: A Fresh Look


The Daily Muse
    


Welcome to the Daily Muse feature of Music Makes Sense!  This daily update brings you up to the minute news about music and music therapy as it relates to our professions, events and individual lives.  You can follow the daily entries by subscribing to Music Makes Sense on Twitter or by "Liking" the Facebook page for Music Makes Sense.  Enjoy, and thanks for reading!

Follow musicmakessense on Twitter



This is some very interesting new research coming out of Australia! Basically, the researcher is saying that a fixation by a teenager on one particular heavy metal song or album can be an indicator of depression. This is especially true if the teen says that the music does not make them feel good about themselves. 


 I am not surprised by this study since we know that people often prefer music that matches their current mood. As music therapists we know that this can be a very powerful tool by different genres and styles of music to gently influence and guide clients into a desired mood or mental state. This research by Dr. McFerran is very valuable since it tries to provide a guide for using music as a screening device for depression. This will be very valuable to parents, especially the ones who are oblivious to what their teens are listening to! Music that you listen to says a lot about who you are and how you are feeling. 


...Maybe all of us should do a little self-audit of our iPods!

  Don't forget to share your favorite posts with friends and family by clicking on the share buttons at the bottom of this post!

No comments:

Post a Comment

Recommended Amazon

Subscribe by email or obtain RSS feed by clicking here:

Amazon orders originating with clicks on any Amazon product link on the site help to benefit Music Makes Sense and its ongoing contribution to the world of music and music therapy. Thank You so much!
Related Posts with Thumbnails