Content Analysis of Reasons for Song Choices Among Individuals Receiving Hospice Care

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe the reasons for song choices of patients and their loved ones in a hospice setting. In all, 21 patients and caregivers participated in semi-structured interviews that were embedded in music therapy sessions at a Midwest hospice. A content analysis applied to participants' interviews revealed four categories and 14 subcategories related to participants' reasons for their song choices. Categories included (a) concrete connections, (b) intangible connections, (c) music, and (d) relationships. Subcategories related to the four main categories were organized as follows: under concrete connections (a) connections with the past, (b) connections with the present, and (c) connections with the future; under intangible connections (a) beliefs, (b) feelings and desires, and (c) images and stories; under music (a) affective responses and beliefs about music/songs, (b) general references to music/songs, (c) instruments, (d) lyrics, (e) structural elements, and (f) style; and under relationships (a) loved ones and (b) self. These categories and subcategories provide a framework that may be useful in expediting assessment processes and clarifying areas where there is a need for musical or verbal validation by the therapist.