The effects of music therapy activities and sibling dyads on social interactions of children with isolated lissencephaly sequence

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of music therapy with and without sibling participation on the social interaction skills of children with Isolated Lissencephaly Sequence (ILS). The research questions addressed the effects of music therapy activities and siblings on the number of vocalizations, the number of gestures, and the duration of eye contact of children with ILS. Participants were divided into three sibling dyads; each consisted of one child with ILS and one child who was not handicapped. The research design was a Modified ABACA Reversal format. Treatment phases included one with music therapy and the siblings and one with individual music therapy. Sessions were conducted two times a week for 20 minutes over a minimum of 25 sessions. According to the results, the highest percentage of vocalizations, the highest percentage of gestures, and the longest eye contact occurred during the individual music therapy treatment.