SynthesisFrontiers in psychology2025
Efficacy of music therapy for depressive symptoms in college students: a meta-analysis and systematic review.
Synthesis in Frontiers in psychology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Effects of a piano music listening intervention on depression, academic burnout, and mindfulness: evidence from a randomized controlled trial among Chinese university students.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- The conflict between need and fear: how privacy concerns moderate the influence of depression on university students' acceptance of AI music therapy.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
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Abstract
Introduction: In China, Depression is a significant mental health issue among college students, with a 28.4% prevalence rate. This meta-analysis systematically synthesizes empirical data to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of music therapy in mitigating depressive symptoms within collegiate populations. Methods: Two authors searched seven international and Chinese databases from inception to February 5, 2025, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on music therapy for college students with depressive symptoms. Statistical synthesis was performed with RevMan 5.3 software, using random-effects models to calculate standardized mean differences (SMDs) with 95% confidence intervals. Results: Sixteen RCTs involving 938 participants were included. Pooled estimates showed significant reductions in depressive symptoms as measured by SDS (SMD = -1.19, 95% CI: -1.56 to -0.82; Conclusion: Music therapy is an effective adjunctive intervention for managing depressive symptoms in college students. However, due to significant heterogeneity, future research needs standardized treatment frameworks. Multi-center RCTs with blinded assessment and longitudinal designs should be prioritized to clarify dose-response relationships and neurophysiological mechanisms, facilitating the integration of music therapy into evidence-based mental health strategies for this population.
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