THE EFFECTS OF GUITAR-ACCOMPANIED SINGING INTERVENTION ON SUNDOWNING IN ELDERLY PERSONS WITH DEMENTIA

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a guitar-accompanied singing intervention on agitated behaviors associated with the transition from day to night, referred to as sundowning, in individuals with dementia. Eleven guardians signed the informed consent; however, two eligible participants declined to take part in the study. The data on one participant were used to train the research assistant regarding the data collection method; therefore, her information and data were excluded from this thesis. Out of the remaining 8 participants (N=8), four (n=4) of them received music therapy, and other four (n=4) listened to newspaper reading. The investigator provided both conditions. A single 10-min individual session was offered to each participant approximately between 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. The investigator provided a guitar-accompanied singing intervention to the music therapy treatment group. She read the inner sections of the Kansas City Star newspaper to the control group. All sessions were video recorded, and a 15-s time sampling method was used to collect data using rubrics derived from the Pittsburg Agitation Scale (PAS) for both groups. The results are discussed as a series of case studies due to the small sample size. All 4 participants in the music therapy condition completed the entire 10-min session whereas 2 out of 4 participants in the newspaper reading condition completed only part of the session due to increased agitation and a participant's decision. Motor agitation was most common, and aberrant vocalization was the next. No aggressiveness was observed during the sessions. This study was preliminary, and the results cannot be generalized; however, noteworthy observations were made. Recommendations for future research implementations are discussed. Keywords: music therapy, music, singing, agitation, dementia, sundowning