Meet Hui in music: a case report of group music therapy for a Chinese male prisoner

ABSTRACT

This case report illustrates the change process of one inmate participant in a music therapy group. The case was selected from a research project of group music therapy for offenders. The participant, Hui, a male inmate, participated in 20 biweekly sessions of group music therapy for male adult inmates in a Chinese prison. Three methods, music improvisation, music and imagery, and song writing, were used in the therapy. Music therapy led Hui (pseudonym) to change from a defensive isolated man into a person who was able to experience and share his emotions with other group members through music. In this case report, we detail the transformative process of Hui and elaborate the music therapist’s reflection from theoretical and cultural perspectives. Later, the theoretical issues related to treatment in offender rehabilitation context are discussed in-depth. By making the intervention process transparent, we hope this case report can help readers to understand how the effects of music therapy on decreasing anxiety and depression and improving self-esteem that have been found in research may have taken place in the intervention.

KEYWORDS:

• Group music therapy
• prisoner
• improvisation
• music and imagery
• song writing

Conflict of interests

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Xi-Jing Chen

Xi-Jing Chen is a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China; The Credential Music Therapist-Board Certified, China; Vice Secretary General of the Chinese Music Therapy Association. She received her PhD on music therapy in 2014 from Aalborg University, Denmark. This case report is one part of her PhD project in Aalborg University.

Niels Hannibal

Niels Hannibal is Associate Professor at Music Therapy Education, Institute for Psychology and Communication at Aalborg University; Editor-in-Chief of the Music Therapy Online Journal (MIPO). He received his music therapy degree in 1994 and his PhD in 2001 from Aalborg University.