An innovative project using music therapy to improve wellbeing among traumatised Ukrainian displaced families in London has been expanded to include children and mothers from Afghanistan.
Music therapy has been shown to reduce depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among displaced families but there is limited related research.
Academics from Middlesex University, the University of College London and the University South Wales, funded by the Music Therapy Charity and Middlesex University, staged a 12-week course of music therapy as well as a control group with displaced families and with children under three from Ukraine and Afghanistan at the Old Diorama Arts Centre in London. All the families are based within the London area. This project was launched by Dr Fabia Franco, the principal investigator until January 2024, who sadly passed away before it started.
More than seven million Ukrainians had fled the ongoing war after the country was invaded by Russia in March 2022 with a total of 65,700 residing in the UK as of May this year. The UK also hosts approximately 21,000 Afghans, including families with young children residing in temporary accommodation as of March 2023.
Letitia Sabu, principal investigator from January 2024 and senior lecturer in psychology at Middlesex University, said: “We are creating a context that values their identity so they feel connected and accepted and hope that on completion of this project we are integrating refugees into society by empowering them to become active and independent members in their community which will obviously benefit the wider society.”
Dr Elizabeth Coombes, co-investigator and senior lecturer in therapeutic studies at the University of South Wales, said: “Refugee parents can feel really alienated and disempowered in their role as parents. This can then really impact the bond that should be there between children and parents so what music therapy can offer them is ways to bring that back together.”
Dr Nina Polytimou, co-investigator and lecturer at the psychology and human development faculty at University College London, said: “We hope the language and communication development of children is going to be enhanced and supported and believe music is a particularly powerful tool in doing that mainly because it creates powerful emotions.”
The research team is monitoring heart and respiration rates of parents and child to analyse psychophysiological changes and levels of stress, conducting interviews with the parents and drafting in specialist Ukrainian and Afghani musicians.
Dr Beth Pickard, co-investigator and senior lecturer from the University of South Wales, said: “This is a highly innovative project in a UK and international context to use musical therapy with displaced families and it’s important to research from the outset so we can capture the impact and ensure it benefits more people in future.”
The project with Ukrainian families last year based on a feasibility study showed a decrease in PTSD, anxiety and depression from loss as well as an improvement in cognitive functioning.
One Ukraine mother, who has a 19-month old daughter, Polina, who is unable to speak English or her native language yet, said: “After these music sessions she started to speak and not just speak but also sing words. She doesn’t use these words in everyday life but when she sings she pronounces the words of the song clearly.”
Another Ukraine mother, who has a 12-month old son, said: “I love music very much and I have become more calm, balanced and positive and my child feels it too. Together as a unit we have this connection. Therefore, the benefits of participating in this programme and its impact are indeed significant and we greatly benefit from these sessions. We are very grateful for them.”
Dr Tamara Fedotiuk, research fellow and visiting researcher at Middlesex University, said: “Our Ukrainian mothers are also facing the ongoing stress of a prolonged war and significant losses. Therefore, despite being physically here, they are emotionally and mentally still in Ukraine. Here, in the music therapy, they have the opportunity to find peace, support and the chance to communicate with each other and see how music develops their relationship with their children.”
The film crew from Buckingham New University was led by Dr Tom McGorrian, associate professor, with one graduate and three BA film studies students. The Hopscotch Charity and UnityHub Charitable Foundation helped recruit displaced Afghan and Ukrainian families.
