The Music Sounds Better With You – a new report from Music for Dementia
We are excited to publish our new report ‘The Music Sounds Better With You’, providing a glimpse into the carer experience of using music and technology. The first report Music for Dementia produced in 2018 described a music and dementia landscape that was fragmented and even considered a bit niche. Since then, the landscape has evolved significantly with music becoming a much more widely used tool for people living with dementia and their carers. To build on this, we wanted to delve deeper into the carer experience and now felt like the right moment. From a survey of 1,000 non-professional carers, the results were encouraging.
You can read the full report here.
What did we find?
There’s a valuable role that Gen Z and Gen A can be playing to support people living with dementia in their family, simpy by sharing their knowledge of music and technology.
Almost half of respondents felt that music can help reach a loved one and turn a day around. But while 80% of care givers are using music as a tool to support their dementia care, only 61% feel very confident using technology, leaving 39% who may not be able benefit from streaming services that require technology such as Spotify or web-based technologies such as m4d Radio and Music Can.
Speaking about the launch of the report, Music for Dementia MD Sarah Metcalfe said “It’s fantastic to see so many carers using the power of music at home as part of their care. Technology plays a crucial part in providing personalised and accessible music, but our new report highlights a worrying digital divide which is preventing some carers from harnessing music’s full potential.”
“The good news is that help is at hand. Young people might not think they have a vital role to play in dementia care, but Gen Z and Gen A can make an important contribution just by using their tech knowledge. They can compile playlists of meaningful music, set up streaming services and teach older generations how to access them. These simple things can help turn a bad day into a better one.”
Evidence shows music can help people living with dementia by reducing behavioural symptoms such as agitation and aggression. It can also improve quality of life, reduce depression and the need for antipsychotic medication. For carers it’s a helpful tool that can change moods, create moments of joy and points of connection with loved ones.
The Music Sounds Better With You report was written by Ellen Bassam, Research and Communications Officer at Music for Dementia. It is the first in a series of reports Music for Dementia will publish based upon an extensive representation study and research amongst 1,000 carers of people living with dementia.
Ellen comments: “Our research has uncovered a wealth of insights into the experience of people caring for people with dementia. The data shows that there’s an expanding network of non-traditional carers who have diverse experiences and unique challenges. Music for Dementia intend to publish two additional reports exploring these insights further. It is also committed to making its raw data available to any organisation that may benefit from reviewing this wealth of research.”
If you have any questions or would be interested in having a look at our full dataset, please get in touch and we would be happy to accomodate.