A quantitative report on effectiveness of music therapy on behavioral changes among mentally challenged children

Background and Aims: Mentally challenged is a generalized neurodevelopment disorder characterized by significantly impaired intellectual and adaptive malfunctioning. Music therapists regard music therapy as a valuable intervention for students with moderate to severe intellectual disability or multiple disabilities. The present study was aimed to assess the effectiveness of music therapy on behavior among mentally challenged children. Methods and Samples : A modified time series approach design was used to evaluate 30 mentally challenged children who fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were selected using purposive sampling technique. The tool used was modified MR Scale Part B. Result : The findings reveal that the mean behaviour score at pre-assessment was 26.53 ± 7.46 and after 45 days of music therapy the mean behaviour score was 17.23 ± 9.56. The difference was found to be statistically significant at p=0.001. Thus, there was a significant improvement in the behavior among mentally challenged children. Conclusion: This study implies that the music therapy was effective in improving the behavior in mentally challenged children.