The MCT
A new music-based
cognitive screening test
To measure cognitive benefits of music therapy and music-rehabilitation activities
Established
reliabilty and validity
Quick to administer and easy to use
Suitable for older adults with severe decline
Why use MCT?
Music therapy and music interventions have increasingly been used both as rehabilitation treatments to support individuals with cognitive and neuropsychiatric decline, and as methods to enhance protective effects on the ageing brain.
Cognitive assessments normally used in neurorehabilitation contexts to screen a range of general cognitive functions (e.g., orientation, attention, memory) are not tailored to evaluate music training and therapy cognitive benefits, and some present limitations to detect subtle impairments present in the very early stages of cognitive decline or have floor effects making them “too difficult” for individuals with severe stages of decline. This limits the possibility to identify relative cognitive strengths and weaknesses in this population.
To overcome these limitations we developed the MCT, a novel standardized music-based screening cognitive test, aiming to:
Easily and briefly screen and monitor general cognitive functioning during music-based rehabilitation activities
Support music therapists in independently assessing participants' cognition and fine-tuning the nature of the treatment
Establish a common ground that therapists can use to communicate efficiently among themselves
Facilitate therapists in consistently highlighting music-based therapy benefits to patient’s families and care-staff