Abstract

This thesis presents a neurodiversity-affirming music therapy program framework designed for autistic students experiencing auditory sensitivities in a specialized school environment. Guided by the Intervention Mapping (IM) framework, this project integrates theory, empirical research, and published accounts of lived experiences of autism to address a gap in practice and create a flexible and inclusive program that values sensory diversity. Drawing from autistic first-voice narratives, as well as literature on music therapy practice and other health-related fields, the program addresses the limitations of traditional desensitization approaches. This is achieved by emphasizing autonomy, predictable sound environments, and ethically grounded assent processes for speaking and non-speaking autistic students who may communicate in a variety of ways. Organized across structural, content and delivery components, the program may offer music therapists concrete strategies which may support sensory regulation through adaptive, student-led engagement with sound. By centering autistic perspectives and integrating cross-disciplinary perspectives, it seeks to contribute to advancing music therapy practice by calling for a refinement of sensory supports in specialized school contexts and informing the development of guidelines that explicitly integrate auditory considerations into therapeutic planning.