An Individual Music Intervention for Adults With Intellectual Disabilities and Challenging Behavior: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Background: Individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) are more likely to have problems with executive functioning (EF) and challenging behavior (CB), which are negatively linked to well-being. Among clinical populations, music interventions have been shown to improve various outcome measures, such as CB and EF. Until now, no randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have been conducted to examine the effectiveness of an individual music intervention for adults with ID and CB.

Objective: The study aims to identify the effect and feasibility of an individual music intervention compared with care-as-usual for people with ID and CB.

Methods: In this study, a 2-group RCT with a pretest, posttest, and follow-up assessment after 8 weeks is presented. Participants of the music intervention condition will receive 16 individual music sessions within 8 to 10 weeks. The music intervention will be guided by a manual for music workers, in which every session will have a different focus (introduction, emotions, different EF, and end performance). Participants receiving care as usual will function as a control group. After the research is finished, they will be offered a budget, which they can spend on musical activities or musical instruments as they wish. Assessments will include caregiver rating scales and self-report questionnaires and tests, which will assess outcome measures of CB, well-being, depression, anxiety, self-esteem, and 4 domains of EF. A process evaluation will be conducted after the completion of the study, which entails the analysis of data on multiple aspects of the intervention and the study overall.

Results: Enrollment commenced in July 2021, and data collection ended in May 2023. A total of 97 participants were recruited, with 44 participants allocated to the intervention group and 53 allocated to the control group. Data will be analyzed after this protocol has been accepted for publication.

Conclusions: Because there are currently no published RCTs of an individual music intervention for adults with ID and CB, this study will provide insight into the effectiveness and experiences of an individual music intervention for this target group.

Trial registration: International Clinical Trials Registry Platform NL8482; http://tinyurl.com/4565s5pd.

International registered report identifier (irrid): DERR1-10.2196/52497.

Keywords: RCT; anxiety; challenging behavior; depression; executive functioning; intellectual disability; music intervention; randomized controlled trial; self-esteem; study protocol; well-being.