Music Therapy for Late-Life Depression: Emotion, Connection, and Well-Being in Older Adults

DepressionOlder AdultsMental HealthScoping Review

Jun 18

Written By Andrew Wolfson

Article Overview

This 2025 scoping review examines how music therapy may support older adults living with late-life depression. Reviewing 31 studies, the authors identified a range of therapeutic factors, mechanisms of change, and related outcomes associated with music therapy in this population. The review organized these findings into five domains: emotion, social, cognition, arousal, and behavior and motivation.

Among these domains, emotion emerged as the most prominent. The review highlights processes such as emotion regulation, emotional expression, pleasure, stress reduction, reminiscence, social connection, and motivation as important parts of how music therapy may help older adults with depression. Rather than focusing on one single intervention, the article maps the broader field and shows how music therapy may support mental health and quality of life in later adulthood.

Why This Matters

This article is valuable because it helps explain not only that music therapy may support older adults with depression, but also how it may work. For families, clinicians, and care communities, this kind of review offers a more complete picture of music therapy as a relational, emotional, and biopsychosocial intervention rather than just a pleasant activity.

It is also a strong fit for a public-facing music therapy library because late-life depression is an important mental health issue, and many people are looking for supportive, nonpharmacological approaches that address mood, connection, engagement, and quality of life. The review also honestly notes that the literature remains heterogeneous, which helps present the field in a credible and balanced way.

Lu, H., Li, Y., Wong, M. T. H., Qiu, X., Zhang, M., Jiang, C., Zhang, X., Lau, K. K.-L., Ho, R. T. H., & Tong, T. (2025). Therapeutic factors, presumed mechanisms of change, and relevant outcomes in music therapy for people with late-life depression: A scoping review. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 95, 102325. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2025.102325