Meaning Making Process and Recovery Journeys Explored Through Songwriting in Early Neurorehabilitation: Exploring the Perspectives of Participants of Their Self-Composed Songs Through the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.
Felicity A Baker, Jeanette Tamplin, Nikki Rickard, Peter New, Jennie Ponsford, Chantal Roddy, Young-Eun C Lee
Author Information
Felicity A Baker: Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Jeanette Tamplin: Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
This pilot study examined how 15 participants in early rehabilitation described their self-composed Songs 6- to 12-months following participation in a 6-week identity-focused songwriting program. Specific focus was given to the process of meaning making and identity reconstruction in the participants' self-composed songs. Data were collected through individual semi-structured interviews ( = 15) and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Findings were developed idiographically as super-ordinate themes unique to each participant, then analyzed across cases to identify recurrent themes and subthemes. Participants described the songwriting process as taking them through one of four distinct recovery journeys described by individuals following acquired neurodisability who underwent a focused therapeutic songwriting program. These included (1) re-conceptualizing values and shifting perspectives about self (my body is broken but my mind has been set free); (2) recognizing acquired inner resources to negotiate discrepancies in self (hope is there); (3) confirming existing values and identifying resources and coping strategies (I have what I need to move forward); (4) confirming previously held values and ongoing process of negotiating discrepancies in self (I don't yet have the answers). The current study provides insight into the nature and process of meaning making and recovery journeys perceived by individuals with neurodisability. Our findings suggest that songwriting could be a therapeutic tool to facilitate identity reconstruction in neurorehabilitation.
