Hip-Hop and Spoken Word Therapy: A School Counseling Intervention

• In Event: 29.064 - Hip-Hop-Influenced Mental Health and Wellness Interventions: Experiences From the Field

Abstract

In this paper, I describe the benefits of using hip hop and spoken word therapy (HHSWT) within public schools as a counseling framework to address student emotional distress and respond to the vast mental health disparities in urban communities. Generally, urban youth are less likely to receive care in comparison to their more affluent counterparts. Furthermore, the traditional structures of schools inundate school counselors with administrative work and often strip them of their ability to assist students in times of need. In this study I examined an urban counseling program which used a hip-hop rooted approach to counseling rooted in evidence based practices, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, in a group counseling setting. This program was developed to address the mental health disparities impacting students with a goal of supporting them in modeling effective and culturally aligned coping skills within their communities. As part of this school counseling program, student participants wrote and recorded a 20-song emotionally themed hip hop album. Analysis of student lyrics and interviews rendered evidence to support the use of HHSWT by school counselors to both create spaces for urban youth to tackle their emotional distress, and address the larger systemic mental health disparities that plague urban communities.

Author

• Ian Levy, Manhattan College