A randomized controlled trial comparison of three music therapy formats on cognitive function and psychological well-being in normal aging.
Level 2 - randomized trial
Randomized controlled trial comparing three music therapy delivery formats against a passive control group.
PubMed 42161569 · doi:10.1093/geronb/gbag070
What was done
In a randomized controlled trial, 62 older adults without cognitive impairment were assigned to one of four arms: one-to-one music therapy (mean age 79.71), small-group music therapy (mean age 82.00), large-group music therapy (mean age 79.83), or a passive control group receiving no music therapy (mean age 74.56). Structured sessions ran for 20 weeks. Pre- and post-intervention assessments measured cognitive function (memory, attention, executive function, verbal fluency) and well-being (general well-being, depression, sleep quality).
What was found
The abstract reports statistical directions without exact numeric values or effect sizes. Mixed ANOVAs demonstrated pre-post improvements across several cognitive measures and depressive symptoms (main effects of Time) that varied by format (Time × Group interactions). All three music therapy groups showed cognitive improvements, whereas the passive control group showed declines across many cognitive scores. Depressive symptoms decreased significantly in all intervention groups with no change in controls. Dynamic Bayesian Network analysis indicated that cognitive reserve and baseline executive function influenced outcomes.
Why it matters
This trial suggests that structured music therapy can support cognitive performance and psychological well-being in cognitively intact older adults, and that group-based delivery formats may be viable alternatives to one-to-one therapy.
Limits
The sample size was small (N = 62) divided among four separate arms (average ~15–16 participants per group), limiting statistical power. The comparator was a passive, no-treatment control rather than an active control, leaving open the possibility of non-specific social or attention effects. Specific effect sizes, confidence intervals, and p-values were omitted from the abstract.
Cited by
- supports Randomized controlled trials show that novel cognitive stimuli in older adults—such as language learning, coordinative movement, musical training, or musical pattern identification—lead to improvements in cognitive function, particularly executive function.