The effectiveness of music therapy on social skills and psychological health of students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

ADHD is characterized by excessive physical activity, inability to maintain attention, and impulsive behaviors. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of music therapy on the social skills and psychological health of children with ADHD in Kerman.

This study was a quasi-experimental study with pre-test and post-test with the control group. The statistical population consisted of all high school students (7-12 years) in Kerman City. A purposive method was used to select 30 subjects (15 experimental and 15 control). The experimental group received 10 sessions of 90-minute intervention. The control group received no training. Subjects responded to the Conners Parenting Questionnaire, Matson Social Skills Questionnaire, and Goldberg and Hiller General Health Questionnaire before and after the intervention. Subjects' scores were analyzed by covariance analysis using SPSS-25.

The results showed that the mean and standard deviation of social skills in the post-test of the experimental group increased from 22.41 (5.74) to 30.86 (6.42). The mean and standard deviation of psychological health in the post-test of the experimental group increased from 18.46 (4.99) to 27.86 (4.45). The results of ANCOVA showed that music therapy increases the social skills and psychological health of hyperactive students (p<0.01).

Therefore, music therapy can be used to increase social skills and improve the mental health of overactive children in health centers.