Miss Philippa Riley
PhD Research Student
Office: 2.05 QMB
Email: philippariley@computing.dundee.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)1382 386537
Fax: +44 (0)1382 385509 [FAO: Miss Philippa Riley]
Write to:
Miss Philippa Riley
School of Computing
University of Dundee
Dundee DD1 4HN
Scotland
Research Group: Assistive and healthcare technologies
Research Themes: Interaction Design, Support for Dementia, Software Methods for Age and Disability
View publications authored/co-authored by Philippa
PhD Research Project Summary:
Supervisors:
Dr Norman Alm, Prof Alan Newell
Title:
How can technology support musical creativity for people with dementia?
Brief Description:
Philippa’s research concentrates on musical creativity, investigating how technology can support creative music making for people with dementia. Dementia continues to be a growing problem, affecting the life of the person with dementia, as well as family members. The main symptoms of the disease are memory impairment, cognitive dysfunction and problems with executive functioning. Research has established that the provision of activities can improve quality of life for people with dementia, and this project aims to improve the lives of people with dementia, by developing novel technology that will enable a person with dementia to create their own musical compositions.
People with dementia experience difficulties with communication, short-term memory, and learning new skills. It is these issues that make it difficult to find activities that people with dementia can participate in. However, music is an activity enjoyed by people with mild dementia through to those in the advanced stages of dementia.
Research has shown that people with dementia can be creative, although when it comes to music, Philippa has found a lack of resources available to facilitate participation in active music making. Traditional musical instruments are too complex to play, and so music therapists have rhythm making sessions using percussion instruments. The aim of this research project is to develop a novel tool to support the creation of meaningful music for people with dementia, and from this, provide key insights into musical creativity in people with dementia.
It is important that the music created is pleasant for both player and listener. Philippa has therefore experimented with chord playing, as chord passages played in any sequence will always sound harmonious. By using specific chord types, i.e. major or minor, passages of chords can also be used to portray emotions. Researchers have discussed how music can communicate emotion, and as people with dementia are prone to difficulties with communication, the tool could also be useful for self-expression.
Philippa is currently developing a tool, and once complete, will carry out investigations to establish its usability, whether it can successfully be used for music creation, whether it provides enjoyment, and if it can actively engage people with dementia. It will also be interesting to establish if people with dementia can use it for self-expression.