Study: Drumming may help reduce behavioral problems in kids

By Staff Writer

Group drumming sessions can help reduce troublesome behavior among children, according to a study by the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Arts and Healing Center.

Time magazine reports that the 12-week program was designed to see if drumming activities could help low-income youths who struggle with emotional and social problems. The study involved about 100 children in fifth grade. Half of the participants came from intervention classrooms, while the other half came from standard learning environments. Each group was split into two, with one half receiving drum lessons and the other attending unrelated programming.

Students in the drum program learned to play in a call-and-response structure, which promotes collaboration between peers. Other exercises taught the kids "calm down mantras." The goals of the lessons were to help manage anger, increase self-acceptance, learn from others and encourage positive behavior.

Following the three-month drumming program, researchers surveyed teachers about the students' conduct in the classroom. They found that behavioral problems were reduced in both the intervention and standard classrooms. Among the children who participated in the drumming group, their problems dropped about 111 percent. In three separate assessment categories - internalized, externalized and "total" problems - the kids in the drumming program improved significantly more than those involved the other lessons.

Students with oppositional tendencies may also benefit from wilderness camps, which promote positive and disciplined behavior through outdoor therapy treatment.