CBMT Assessment and Treatment Planning 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A music therapist notices that a client consistently shows elevated heart rate and agitation during up-tempo music but calm breathing during slow, legato music. How should this physiological data influence treatment planning?
- Ignore it because physiological responses are outside music therapy scope
- Use slow, legato music as a therapeutic tool for relaxation-based goals (Correct answer)
- Increase up-tempo music to build tolerance
- Refer the client to a cardiologist before continuing
Correct answer: Use slow, legato music as a therapeutic tool for relaxation-based goals
Observed physiological responses to music are valid assessment data; preferring music that produces calm responses should directly inform the selection of musical stimuli in the treatment plan.
Question 2: Which ethical principle is MOST at risk if a music therapist establishes treatment goals without involving the client in the planning process?
- Beneficence
- Justice
- Autonomy (Correct answer)
- Fidelity
Correct answer: Autonomy
Autonomy—the client's right to self-determination—is directly violated when treatment goals are set without the client's informed participation.
Question 3: An MT-BC working with older adults in a memory care unit wants to assess music recognition. Which approach is most appropriate for this population?
- Administer a written multiple-choice music history exam
- Play recorded familiar songs and observe behavioral and verbal responses (Correct answer)
- Conduct a formal music aptitude assessment
- Have the client compose original music
Correct answer: Play recorded familiar songs and observe behavioral and verbal responses
Playing familiar music and observing responses is ecologically valid and accessible for individuals with dementia who may have intact long-term musical memory but limited verbal or cognitive capacity.
Question 4: When using a Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT) framework, treatment planning for a client with Parkinson's disease would most likely target which primary functional domain?
- Creative self-expression and emotional insight
- Sensorimotor function, particularly gait and rhythmic movement (Correct answer)
- Academic skill acquisition
- Grief processing and spiritual exploration
Correct answer: Sensorimotor function, particularly gait and rhythmic movement
NMT research strongly supports rhythmic auditory stimulation (RAS) for improving gait and motor function in Parkinson's disease, making sensorimotor goals the primary NMT focus.
Question 5: A music therapist is developing short-term objectives for a child with a speech delay. Which objective is written in the MOST measurable and observable way?
- Client will improve communication skills through music
- Client will enjoy singing songs in session
- Client will vocalize the final word of a familiar song phrase in 4 out of 5 trials (Correct answer)
- Client will become more verbal over the next month
Correct answer: Client will vocalize the final word of a familiar song phrase in 4 out of 5 trials
This objective specifies the target behavior (vocalizing the final word), the condition (familiar song phrase), and the criterion (4/5 trials), making it clearly measurable and observable.
Question 6: A music therapist is assessing a client's emotional responses during improvisation. Which of the following would be considered a PRIMARY source of assessment data in this scenario?
- The client's insurance pre-authorization form
- Direct therapist observation of the client's musical and behavioral responses during the session (Correct answer)
- A family member's written account of the client's music preferences
- A secondary review of published research on improvisation
Correct answer: Direct therapist observation of the client's musical and behavioral responses during the session
Direct observation of client behavior during the therapeutic interaction is the primary and most ecologically valid source of music therapy assessment data.
Question 7: In treatment planning, the term 'contraindication' refers to:
- A musical technique that is highly recommended for a specific diagnosis
- A condition or factor that makes a particular music therapy intervention potentially harmful or inadvisable (Correct answer)
- A billing code used to justify music therapy services
- A type of music therapy assessment tool
Correct answer: A condition or factor that makes a particular music therapy intervention potentially harmful or inadvisable
A contraindication is any factor—medical, psychological, or situational—that makes a specific intervention inappropriate or risky for a particular client.
CBMT Assessment and Treatment Planning 5
A music therapist notices that a client consistently shows elevated heart rate and agitation during up-tempo music but calm breathing during slow, legato music.
How should this physiological data influence treatment planning?