scholarly journals What Can We Learn About the Concept of Meaning in Life from Older Adults with Alzheimer’s Disease? A Directed Content Analysis Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Dewitte ◽  
Tine Schellekens ◽  
Michael F. Steger ◽  
Frank Martela ◽  
Siebrecht Vanhooren ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Meaning In Life ◽  
Analysis Study ◽  
Directed Content Analysis

scholarly journals Virtues and Character Strengths in Persons with Mild Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 749-750
Author(s):  
Jocelyn McGee ◽  
Michaela McElroy
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Clinical Practice ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Character Strengths ◽  
Mild Disease ◽  
Directed Content Analysis ◽  
Virtues And Character Strengths

Abstract The Values in Action (VIA) framework, from positive psychology, consists of 6 virtues (wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence) which can be broken down into 24 strengths of character (Peterson & Seligman, 2004). Although this framework has been used to understand virtues and strengths in various populations, persons with Alzheimer’s disease and other progressive dementias have been largely excluded from such studies. The aims of our study were to utilize the VIA framework to: 1) examine the expression of virtues and character strengths in a sample of persons diagnosed with probable AD (who were clinically designated as having mild disease based on neuropsychological assessment); and 2) provide implications for further strengths-based research and clinical practice with this population. Twenty-eight older adults, between the ages of 56 and 93 (M = 77.88, SD = 9.88), participated in the study. All had a Clinical Dementia Reacting Scale (CDR) of 1 which suggested mild dementia. The Dimensions of Living with Dementia Interview (DLD; McGee & Carlson, 2013) was utilized for data collection. Interviews lasted approximately 45 minutes per participant. The interviews were professionally transcribed, audit checked, and uploaded to NVivo (2018) for analysis. Directed content analysis (Hsieh & Shannon, 2005) was utilized to extend the VIA framework to this sample. The virtues of wisdom, courage, humanity, temperance, and transcendence were demonstrated. We share how these virtues and corresponding character strengths can assist people with early-stage dementia in adaptation to the disease. Implications for clinical practice and further research are provided.

scholarly journals Meaning in life matters for older adults with Alzheimer’s disease in residential care: associations with life satisfaction and depressive symptoms

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (5) ◽  
pp. 607-615 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Dewitte ◽  
Mathieu Vandenbulcke ◽  
Jessie Dezutter
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Meaning In Life ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Cognitive Status ◽  
Presence Of Meaning

ABSTRACTObjectives:To examine whether previously established associations between experiences of meaning in life on the one hand and life satisfaction and depressive symptoms on the other hand are transferable to a population of older residential care residents with Alzheimer’s disease (AD).Design:Cross-sectional study using questionnaires administered in a structured interview format.Setting:Nine residential care settings in Flanders, Belgium.Participants:Convenience sample of 138 older adults (+65) living in residential care with a diagnosis of AD.Measurements:Meaning in life was measured using the Presence of Meaning (PoM) subscale of the Meaning in Life Questionnaire-Short Form, life satisfaction was measured using the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), depressive symptoms were measured using a five-item short form of the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), and general cognitive status was measured using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).Results:Controlling for demographic variables (age, sex, and marital status) and cognitive status, meaning in life scores were positively predictive of life satisfaction scores and negatively predictive of depressive symptoms. Post-hoc analyses suggested a possible interaction between meaning in life and cognitive status in predicting both outcomes of psychological functioning (GDS and SWLS).Conclusion:The presence of meaning in life is related to important well-being outcomes for older adults with AD living in residential care. More awareness for the importance of existential themes and interventions fostering meaning might be warranted for this population.

scholarly journals Continuing to participate in the dance of life as oneself: The lived experience of meaning in life for older adults with Alzheimer’s disease

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Dewitte ◽  
Els van Wijngaarden ◽  
Tine Schellekens ◽  
Mathieu Vandenbulcke ◽  
Jessie Dezutter
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Psychological Functioning ◽  
Meaning In Life ◽  
Personal Perspective ◽  
Positive Psychological Functioning ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Original Insight

Abstract Background and Objectives Meaning in life is an important aspect of positive psychological functioning for older adults. Limited work suggests the relevance of the experience of meaning for people with dementia, but research into this experience from their personal perspective is lacking. The current study provides an in-depth investigation of the lived experience of meaning in life for older adults with Alzheimer’s disease. Research Design and Methods The study was conducted following the phenomenological reflective lifeworld approach. In-depth interviews were conducted with sixteen older adults (+65) with Alzheimer’s disease living either at home or in a nursing home in Belgium. Data-analysis was an iterative process aimed at illuminating the constituents and essence of the phenomenon. Results The essence of the experience of meaning in life for participants was understood as ‘continuing to participate in the dance of life as oneself.’ This experience was further clarified in four closely intertwined constituents: (1) feeling connected and involved, (2) continuing everyday life as oneself, (3) calmly surrendering and letting go, and (4) desiring freedom, growth, and invigoration. Discussion and Implications Our findings contribute to a deeper understanding of meaning in life as experienced by older adults with Alzheimer’s disease themselves. They emphasize the relevance of the concept for psychological dementia research and offer original insight for the inclusion of meaning in life as an important aspect of holistic dementia care.

Cognitive control constrains memory attributions

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen M. Kelley ◽  
Larry L. Jacoby
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Traumatic Brain Injury ◽  
Brain Injury ◽  
Cognitive Control

Abstract Cognitive control constrains retrieval processing and so restricts what comes to mind as input to the attribution system. We review evidence that older adults, patients with Alzheimer's disease, and people with traumatic brain injury exert less cognitive control during retrieval, and so are susceptible to memory misattributions in the form of dramatic levels of false remembering.

Partner-Specific Communication Deficits in Individuals With Alzheimer's Disease

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Eun Jin Paek ◽  
Si On Yoon
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Sorting Task ◽  
Audience Design ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Design Skills ◽  
Referential Expressions

Purpose Speakers adjust referential expressions to the listeners' knowledge while communicating, a phenomenon called “audience design.” While individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) show difficulties in discourse production, it is unclear whether they exhibit preserved partner-specific audience design. The current study examined if individuals with AD demonstrate partner-specific audience design skills. Method Ten adults with mild-to-moderate AD and 12 healthy older adults performed a referential communication task with two experimenters (E1 and E2). At first, E1 and participants completed an image-sorting task, allowing them to establish shared labels. Then, during testing, both experimenters were present in the room, and participants described images to either E1 or E2 (randomly alternating). Analyses focused on the number of words participants used to describe each image and whether they reused shared labels. Results During testing, participants in both groups produced shorter descriptions when describing familiar images versus new images, demonstrating their ability to learn novel knowledge. When they described familiar images, healthy older adults modified their expressions depending on the current partner's knowledge, producing shorter expressions and more established labels for the knowledgeable partner (E1) versus the naïve partner (E2), but individuals with AD were less likely to do so. Conclusions The current study revealed that both individuals with AD and the control participants were able to acquire novel knowledge, but individuals with AD tended not to flexibly adjust expressions depending on the partner's knowledge state. Conversational inefficiency and difficulties observed in AD may, in part, stem from disrupted audience design skills.

Auditory Dysfunction in Alzheimer's Disease

2010 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sridhar Krishnamurti
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Care Setting ◽  
Neurodegenerative Disorder ◽  
Disease Process ◽  
Clinical Protocols ◽  
Speech Language Pathologist ◽  
Auditory Dysfunction

Alzheimer's disease is neurodegenerative disorder which affects a growing number of older adults every year. With an understanding of auditory dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease, the speech-language pathologist working in the health care setting can provide better service to these individuals. The pathophysiology of the disease process in Alzheimer's disease increases the likelihood of specific types of auditory deficits as opposed to others. This article will discuss the auditory deficits in Alzheimer's disease, their implications, and the value of clinical protocols for individuals with this disease.

The Self-Reference Effect on Episodic Memory Recollection in Young and Older Adults and Alzheimer’s Disease

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1107-1117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Lalanne ◽  
Johanna Rozenberg ◽  
Pauline Grolleau ◽  
Pascale Piolino
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Episodic Memory ◽  
The Self ◽  
Self Reference

Effectiveness of multidisciplinary consultation for older adults with Alzheimer's disease in response to acute situations

L Encéphale ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (6) ◽  
pp. 491-495 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Koskas ◽  
C. Pons-Peyneau ◽  
M. Romdhani ◽  
N. Houenou-Quenum ◽  
A. Tigue-Wato ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Multidisciplinary Consultation
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