An Evaluation of Music Therapy State Recognition Legislation in Georgia, Nevada, and North Dakota

Music therapy as a professionalized practice in the United States began in the 1940s and 1950s. In many ways, music therapy is still in an emergent process of professionalization. One of these ways is the paucity of recognition of music therapy in state-level statutes. This study used a qualitative design to evaluate state legislation regulating the practice of music therapy in Georgia, Nevada, and North Dakota, which were the first three states to receive music therapy licensure. The evaluation was conducted in three segments: process, outcome, and comparison. Results from the process evaluation indicated that each states’ music therapy licensure legislation includes similar characteristics, such as establishing a scope of practice and appointing a regulatory body to oversee the license. Results from the outcome evaluation revealed notable differences between desired outcomes declared in writing with the passage of each bill and desired outcomes expressed verbally by music therapists. Comparison between these two sets of desired outcomes and between processes and outcomes suggested that, though these pieces of legislation do not appear to be consistently operating as prescribed in writing, their mere existence is serving to meet the desired outcomes expressed by music therapists.<p></p>