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Updated: Oct 25, 2025
Clinical Practice Protocol of Creative Music Therapy for Preterm Infants and Their Parents in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Published on: January 7, 2020
Parental Attitudes toward Consent for Music Intervention Studies in Preterm Infants: A Cross-Sectional Study
Sofia Bauer1,2, Shulamit Epstein3, Łucja Bieleninik4,5
1Department of Neonatology, Meir Medical Center, Kfar Saba 44281, Israel.
Insights
Parents enroll preterm infants in music therapy studies hoping to help their child, advance medical knowledge, and improve infant brain development and bonding. Recruitment is most effective when medical improvements are still expected.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) research
- Developmental Psychology
- Music Therapy
Background:
- Investigated parental motivations for enrolling preterm infants in music therapy intervention studies within the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
- Examined parental attitudes towards research and music therapy intervention studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To understand the factors influencing parents' decisions to consent or decline participation in music therapy intervention studies for their preterm infants.
- To identify key motivators for participation to optimize recruitment strategies.
Main Methods:
- Surveyed 203 Israeli parents of preterm infants (116 participants, 87 decliners) using pre-piloted questionnaires.
- Assessed parental attitudes towards research and music therapy intervention studies.
Main Results:
- Infants of participants were younger and sicker (Clinical Risk Index for Babies score) compared to non-participants.
- Single-parent families were more likely to decline participation.
- Key motivators included perceived benefits for the child's health, future infant care, medical knowledge advancement, music's role in brain development, and enhanced bonding.
Conclusions:
- Recruitment strategies should emphasize potential benefits to the infant's health, future preterm infant care, and medical knowledge.
- Highlighting music's positive impact on brain development and parent-infant bonding is crucial.
- Optimal recruitment timing is during periods of anticipated medical improvement for the infant.
Abstract:
(1) Background: This study investigated parents' motives for enrolling preterm infants into music therapy intervention studies during Neonatal Intensive Care hospitalization. (2) Methods: We surveyed Israeli parents of preterm infants after they consented or refused to participate in such studies. The pre-piloted questionnaires evaluated attitudes toward research and music therapy intervention studies. The study included 116 (57%) parents who agreed to participate in music therapy studies and 87 (43%) who declined. (3) Results: Infants of those who agreed to participate were younger (17 ± 2.3 vs. 28 ± 4.7 days old, p = 0.03) and sicker (Clinical Risk Index for Babies score 6.1 ± 2.7 vs. 3.68 ± 4.1, p = 0.04). More single-parent families declined to participate (p = 0.05). Parents agreed to participate because they thought the study might help their child, would improve future care of preterm infants and increase medical knowledge (all p < 0.05). In addition, they perceived music as beneficial for brain development, thought it might improve bonding, and routinely listened to music daily. (4) Conclusions: When recruiting parents and preterm infants for music therapy intervention studies, one should highlight potential contributions to the child's health, future children's health and medical knowledge. Stressing music as a potential tool for brain development and augmenting bonding is important. The best time to recruit is when improvements are still anticipated.
