Date of Award

Winter 1-15-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Educational Studies

First Advisor

Patricia Crain de Galarce

Second Advisor

Salvatore Terrasi

Third Advisor

Sharon Kaplan

Abstract

Abstract

This qualitative study explores the role music plays in facilitating transformation and self-actualization among Israeli undergraduate and alumni music students who have experienced trauma or post-traumatic stress disorder. Guided by social constructivist and humanistic-existential frameworks, this research employs a narrative methodology to examine how music operates as a medium for meaning-making, resilience, and growth in non-clinical contexts. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, participant observations, and the analysis of musical compositions and artifacts from two singer-songwriters who transformed personal adversity into creative expression. The findings reveal that although trauma leaves lasting psychological and emotional effects, engagement with music enables individuals to reinterpret their experiences, reconstruct identity, and achieve self-actualization. A key theme that emerged includes music as a connector and catalyst for transformation. The study contributes to the existing body of literature on post-traumatic growth by emphasizing music’s transformative power beyond therapeutic or clinical settings. It also underscores the significance of integrating music and the arts within educational and communal frameworks to promote resilience, self-awareness, and emotional well-being, particularly within the sociocultural context of Israel, a nation experiencing and coping with trauma in the aftermath of the October 7th massacre and the ensuing war.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Download

Share

COinS