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Evaluating the Impact of Social Music

Not Applicable
Recruiting
Conditions
Mental Health Issue
COVID-19
Interventions
Behavioral: Music
Registration Number
NCT06513910
Lead Sponsor
Yale University
Brief Summary

Mental health vulnerability due to stress is increased in People of African Descent (PADs) in America due to disproportionate effects of racism, poverty, education, and criminal justice sentencing. Various meditation and mindfulness approaches have provided evidence of measured reductions in multiple negative dimensions of stress. However, the majority of these studies do not have an adequate representation of PADs or other marginalized groups and are not designed to be culturally relevant or community based. Music has been shown to alleviate multiple symptoms of stress and has been shown to be a preferred and effective support for meditation and mindfulness. However, its role in stress management in PADs engaged in meditation or mindfulness is seldom studied. This study aims to evaluate the effects of a virtual, community-based music mindfulness program on stress management in PAD community members with anxiety and depression during COVID19.

2b. Social Music Study: Investigators will assess the neural mechanisms of feelings of subjective connectedness during communal music listening and creating between dyads of subjects who are both familiar and unfamiliar with each other.

Detailed Description

The investigators also propose a study to investigate the effects of communal drumming in reducing anxiety and increasing connectedness within drum circle community. Investigators hypothesize that these intervention will lead to reductions in scores on stress scales and will provide preliminary data for studies evaluating these types of community programs as an adjunct to the standard of care.

Participants will be screened, consented, and enrolled in dyads in a paradigm in which they will be positioned across from each other while listening to various types of music (i.e. music that is harmonically-intact and music in which the harmonic content has been randomly scrambled).

Survey data will also be collected to assess variables such as musical experience, partner familiarity, perceived stress, etc.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
48
Inclusion Criteria
  • ages 16 and older
Exclusion Criteria
  • contraindications to functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy or Electroencephalography
  • ages 15 and younger

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
SINGLE_GROUP
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Component 2b. Social Music StudyMusicInvestigators will assess the neural mechanisms of feelings of subjective connectedness during communal music listening and creating between dyads of subjects who are both familiar and unfamiliar with each other
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
EEG gamma and theta activity during music vs no music conditionsbaseline measurements on day of study, during music vs no music conditions, and 30 minutes after music listening

EEG gamma and theta activity measured by the Post Spectral Density measures in the gamma range (\>30Hz) and theta (4-8Hz) frequency ranges during music vs no music conditions.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Mean score subjective rating of social connection during sessionbaseline measurements on day of study, during music vs no music conditions, and 30 minutes after music listening

Rating of subjective connectedness will be assessed using a Likert scale with total score range from 1-5, with higher scores indicating more connectedness.

Trial Locations

Locations (2)

BLOOM

🇺🇸

New Haven, Connecticut, United States

Musical Intervention Studios

🇺🇸

New Haven, Connecticut, United States

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