Voice, Youth, Transitional Education, and Mental Health: Singing our way to Wellness

This qualitative action research project investigates the use of voice as a primary therapy within a transitional education setting for young people with mental health challenges in Aotearoa. The researcher examined hauora or health in a holistic way and utilised Te Whare Tapa Whā (Durie, 1998), the recovery model and community music therapy to help the rangatahi (young people) claim ownership of their own health and well-being. The voice is a powerful instrument that has the potential to support all aspects of health but there has been minimal writing about voice-based music therapy in Aotearoa even though the voice is one of the most used instruments in music therapy. The question explored in this research was: in what ways can voice be utilised in a transitional education setting with young people experiencing mental health challenges? Four sources of data were drawn on, clinical notes, a reflexive journal, recordings, and literature. Data were then analysed thematically across four cycles of action, theoretically framed with constructivism. Findings from the study show how use of the voice can support health and wellbeing of students, especially within a framework of songwriting, recording, and/or performance. In particular, the voice was utilised to help manage stress, anxiety, focus, socialisation, and emotional processing. Alongside supporting student wellbeing, developing a personal practice of voicework was shown to be an important tool for the therapist to utilise in their processing, exploration and to help prevent burnout.