23.7. 1993 Vitoria-Gasteiz / Spain - World Federation of Music Therapy

procedure is the meta-analysis, the application of a
variety of statistical formulae to the results of a body of
homogeneous research to compute effect sizes, i.e.
quantitative summaries of the properties and findings of
individual studies. Effect sizes can then be compared
and contrasted across multiple variables (Glass,
McGaw, and Smith, 1984) and these overall results, to
some extent, generalized.
The purpose of this paper is to synthesize the pooled
results of a series of meta-analyses of 55 studies
utilizing 129 dependent variables measuring the effects
of music in medical treatment (Standley, 1986; 1992b:
In Press) with current medical research to identify and
authenticate effective music therapy medical
techniques and, further, to develop these techniques
into clinical procedures which meet the criteria of
standard medical protocol.
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Meta-Analyses
Fifty-five studies conducted between 1957 and 1991
qualified for inclusion in the two meta-analyses by
containing empirical data; by utilizing actual, not
simulated pain stimuli; by utilizing music as an
independent variable; by utilizing subjects who were
actual patients with medical/dental diagnoses; and by
reporting results in a format amenable to replicated
data analysis. The procedures followed the three basic
steps outlined by Getsie, Langer, and Glass (1985): 1) a
complete literature search was conducted to find all
possible members of the defined population of studies
whether published or unpublished sources; 2) the
characteristics and findings of the collected studies
were identified, described, and categorized; and 3) the
composite findings were statistically analyzed and
converted to computed effect sizes.
Estimated effect sizes ranged from 3.28 to -.59,
meaning that the music condition was sometimes more