Lifelong Learning and Musical Interaction – Integrated Musical Activity Increases the Well-being of Older People

AbstractThe reseach objective was to determine whether integrated musical activities have any significant connection to the daily acitivities and well-being of older people. Altogether 205 older people (aged 75 to 95years) participated from senior citizens’ homes, hospitals and day care departments all over Finland. Half of the subjects were placed in music groups and half in a control group.The study concerns the efficacy of the Virkistysverso music programme for older people. The aims of the programme were to increase well-being in elderly people and develop a new means of accessing lifelong learning for seniors in residential care. Another purpose of the programme was to activate older people through holistic and integrative musical activity, in order to attain holistic experiences through the music as well as to enjoy it.The research methods included ADL-scores combined with an evaluation score of the older people's skills and levels of communication and memory. Their mood was also evaluated. The evaluation was done by the nurses who took care of these individuals. The development of abilities and activity levels of the older people was examined on the basis of the discrepancy between the pre-evaluation and post-evaluation measurements. The significance of the difference in mean points and discrepancy points was assessed with t-tests.The results showed significant differences between the music group and the control group concerning the scores for daily activity and independence (ADL). The music group also exhibited a significant progress in memory skills, perception skills, mood and social behaviour compared to the control group. According to the results the Virkistysverso integrated musical activity program seem to be very effective in fostering for the holistic well-being of the participants.It can be concluded that lifelong learning is already present in senior citizens’ homes. Still we need to develop cultural co-operation between nurses and music pedagogues as well as use creative thinking in hospitals to increase meaningful interaction among older people and between them and their nurses through music and other arts