Yoik in Sami elderly and dementia care – a potential for culturally sensitive music therapy?

Abstract

Introduction:The positive impact of familiar, individualized and patient-preferred music in dementia care is acknowledged in the literature. However, traditional indigenous music practices in care contexts are less studied. This study focuses on yoik, a traditional vocal music of the indigenous Sami people of Fennoscandia. The aims of this exploratory study were to investigate key participants' experiences with yoik in care settings, as well as their thoughts with regard to a future study of yoik as a non-pharmacological intervention in Sami elderly and dementia care. Method: Qualitative in-person in-depth interviews with close relatives of persons in need of care, as well as healthcare professionals were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Results: The participants shared that they had observed positive effects whenever yoik was applied in Sami elderly and dementia care, even in persons without a known yoik familiarity. No unwanted effects were reported. The participants supported the idea of a possible clinical investigation of yoik as culturally sensitive music therapy in the future. They recommended that yoik should be implemented on a regular basis in Sami elderly and dementia care. Conclusion:The participants agreed that yoik has potential as a nonpharmacological intervention in Sami elderly and dementia care, and that further investigation is warranted.

Music and Religion: Trends in Recent English-Language Literature (2015–2021)

“…This research includes Lebaka's analysis of music and religion in Bapedi society in South Africa (Lebaka 2020), and Yoon's article on ritualized urtyn duu ("long song") amongst nomadic herders in Mongolia (2018). Several sub-themes emerge within this literature including the association of indigenous music with rites/ceremonies based on "indigenous ontologies" (Diamond 2019), including ancestor veneration and cosmology (So 2015;Adekola 2018;Bell 2018;Lepofsky et al 2020) and healing (Clark 2017;Hämäläinen et al 2021). Discourses related to "spirituality" and the musical sub-discipline of ecomusicology also emerge within the literature on indigenous ontologies (Ryan 2016;Yoon 2018).…”

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