PhD Defence by Tali Gottfried: Creating Bridges: Musicoriented Counseling for Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

This study set out to further develop, strengthen, and test a parent counseling approach in music therapy. Studies  show  that  parents  of  children  with  autism spectrum disorder (ASD) endure a significant amount of stress - not only compared to parents of typically developed children, but also compared to parents of children with other developmental disabilities. One source of increased stress for these parents includes difficulties in communicating with their child; as impairments in communication and social skills are at the core of ASD. Another source for increased stress is the insufficient access to professional help that could provide support to both the child and the parents. This limited access points out the need for a professional mechanism to support the parents with knowledge and strategies to foster better communication between them and their children and help in reducing parental stress level.

Read more and download thesis

PhD supervisors:

Professor Dr. Christian Gold, Aalborg University; Gamut Uni Research Health, Bergen, Norway
Professor Dr. Cochavit Elefant, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel (co-supervisor)

PhD committee:

Professor Dr. Cathy McKinney, Appalatian State University (Chair)
Associate professor Jinah Kim, Jeonju University
Professor Dr. Thomas Stegemann, University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna

The defence is followed by a reception

Everybody is welcome!