scholarly journals Nostalgic conversations: The co-production of an intervention package for people living with dementia and their spouse

Dementia ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 147130122110473
Author(s):  
Emily Dodd ◽  
Sanda Ismail ◽  
Gary Christopher ◽  
Tim Wildschut ◽  
Constantine Sedikides ◽  
...  

Objectives Nostalgic memories are more social than other forms of autobiographical recall, often refer to atypical events, express more positive affect and reflect life as meaningful. Recalling a nostalgic (compared to ordinary) memory increases self-esteem, self-growth, meaning in life and social connectedness for people living with dementia. We set two objectives: to work with people living with dementia to develop an intervention based on nostalgia, and to assess whether couples could engage in nostalgic conversations. Method Our research fell into three phases. Initially, we consulted with people living with dementia and with carers to identify the parameters for a nostalgic intervention. From this, we drafted a workbook that contained triggers for nostalgic conversations, which we then took back to the public contributors for refinement. Finally, we trialled the workbook over 5 weeks with six couples, each of which included a person living with dementia. We assessed pre- and post-intervention self-esteem, self-growth, meaning in life and social connectedness for participants with dementia and social connectedness for carers. We then calculated Reliable Change Index scores and established levels of clinically significant change. We also interviewed couples at the end of the intervention to explore its implementation and acceptability. Results All six couples could identify nostalgic memories, with five couples successfully integrating the nostalgic conversations into their day-to-day lives. A sixth couple found it difficult to engage fully with the intervention, but still considered it useful. All six couples manifested a reliable change in at least one outcome, with one couple showing reliable change across three outcomes. Conclusion The psychological benefits of nostalgia have been robustly demonstrated in laboratory-based studies. This co-production of an intervention that sets nostalgic recall into the context of a conversation has clinical potential but requires further investigation through a larger study.

2021 ◽  
pp. 030573562110646
Author(s):  
Constantine Sedikides ◽  
Joost Leunissen ◽  
Tim Wildschut

We provide a narrative review of the nascent literature on the psychological benefits of music-evoked nostalgia. Music is a prevalent and influential source of nostalgia. Music-evoked nostalgia confers approach-oriented psychological benefits in the social domain (by fostering social connectedness), self-oriented domain (by raising self-esteem, instilling a sense of youthfulness, elevating optimism, and enhancing inspiration), and existential domain (by strengthening meaning in life and augmenting self-continuity). Music-evoked nostalgia also confers psychological benefits indirectly. For example, it elevates optimisms by fostering sequentially social connectedness and self-esteem. Also, by fostering social connectedness, it enhances inspiration, strengthens meaning in life, and augments self-continuity. Furthermore, music-evoked nostalgia serves to buffer individuals against discomforting states, such as sadness. We conclude by discussing music-evoked nostalgia in people with dementia, contemplating the role of individual differences and context, considering the possibility that music-evoked nostalgia serves physiological functions, and asking whether familiarity with the music is necessary for the evocation of nostalgia and its ensuing benefits.


2015 ◽  
Vol 98 (4) ◽  
pp. 416-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Cheston ◽  
Gary Christopher ◽  
Sanda Ismail

Dementia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 330-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanda Umar Ismail ◽  
Richard Cheston ◽  
Gary Christopher ◽  
Jane Meyrick

Objective This review systematically examines evidence relating to the effect of nostalgia on psychological well-being through a meta-analysis of measures of social connectedness, self-esteem, meaning in life, self-continuity, optimism and positive and negative affect. Rationale: If nostalgia is to be used as a clinical intervention to boost well-being in dementia by reducing threat, then it is important to assess its therapeutic potential. Results Searches carried out in July 2014 and updated in February 2018 identified 47 eligible experimental studies comparing nostalgic reminiscence and non-nostalgic reminiscence to be included in the meta-analysis. Nostalgic reminiscence had moderate effects on positive affect (0.51 (0.37, 0.65), p= 0.001), social connectedness (0.72 (0.57, 0.87), p= 0.001), self-esteem (0.50 (0.30, 0.70), p= 0.001), meaning in life (0.77 (0.47, 1.08), p= 0.001) and optimism (0.38 (0.28, 0.47), p= 0.001) and a large effect on self-continuity (0.81 (0.55, 1.07), p= 0.001). There was, however, no difference between the effect of nostalgic reminiscence and non-nostalgic reminiscence for negative affect (−0.06 (−0.20, 0.09), p= 0.443). Conclusion This systematic review and meta-analysis provides an overview of the evidence base for nostalgia. This is an important stage in developing nostalgia as a clinical intervention for people with dementia which might be achieved, for instance, by adapting current reminiscence and life review techniques. This meta-analysis will therefore also serve as a valuable reference point for the continued exploration of nostalgia as an intervention.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebekah Jade McKenzie ◽  
Timothy P. Chambers ◽  
Kathryn Nicholson-Perry ◽  
Joel Pilgrim ◽  
Philip B. Ward

Increasing prevalence rates of mental health problems among adolescents is an issue of growing concern. Surf therapy is a novel intervention that may provide tangible benefits to address this problem. Congruent with the ecological dynamics perspective (EDP), the existing research postulates that surf therapy yields psychological benefits in part due to the unique affordances of immersion in a blue space such as the ocean. Evidence worldwide has validated the use of surfing as a therapeutic mediator to achieve positive change, however, no such research has been conducted on Australian adolescents. The current study aimed to evaluate the impact of the Waves of Wellness (WOW) Foundation's 8 week surf therapy program on mental health outcomes in Australian at-risk youth. The study employed a mixed-methods design to examine the experiences of participants. Nine adolescents (Mage = 14.9; SD = 1.2; 8 female) participated in the quantitative stage, with four completing the qualitative interview. Results indicated positive changes in resilience, self-esteem, social connectedness, and depressive symptoms post-intervention, however, improvements were not maintained at follow-up. Participants unanimously agreed that the program normalised their experiences with mental health through the unique leaning environment and fostered personal growth through mastery experiences and the development of healthy relationships. The EDP provided the most compelling explanation of the results denoting that benefits arise from the reciprocal relationship between individual, task, and environment. Despite the small and heterogenous sample, the findings provided preliminary evidence of the efficacy of surf therapy among Australian youth and offer a potential starting point for further research utilising larger more diverse samples.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 1422-1436
Author(s):  
Hollie Montague ◽  
Ian Fairholm

AbstractThe current study compared and assessed the effectiveness of the Minnesota model in reducing psychological symptoms of anxiety and depression among two groups: individuals with clinically diagnosed addiction only (n = 29) and individuals with clinically diagnosed anxiety/depression in the absence of addiction (n = 25). Anxiety and depression were measured using the Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7 and the Patient Health Questionnaire 9, respectively. Two one-way analyses of covariance found no significant differences in post-intervention anxiety and depression scores when comparing the addiction group and the anxiety/depression group (F(1, 51) = 0.075, p = 0.786 and F(1, 51) = 0.302, p = 0.585, respectively). Reliable change index calculations also indicated that both the addiction group and the anxiety/depression group exhibited clinically significant reductions in anxiety and depression following treatment. These findings are considered in light of key methodological limitations, and the theoretical and therapeutic implications are discussed.


Author(s):  
Mateu Servera ◽  
Belén Sáez ◽  
Joan Miquel Gelabert Mir

Fear of darkness is highly prevalent and stable in children and often ends up becoming a specific situational phobia. The aim of this study is to analyze the feasibility of adapting and applying it through a Virtual Reality (VR) tool by nonexpert therapists. A pre-experimental study was carried out with six participants between the ages of 8 and 12 years old using pre- and posttreatment scales for assessing the fear of darkness. Statistically significant differences with large effects were found in all posttreatment measures: EMO (Roshenthal’s r = 0.64), WCDAN (r = 0.52), and Global item of current fear of darkness (r = 0.59). Using the Reliable Change Index (RCI) as a measure of clinically significant change, four participants improved satisfactorily, one acceptably, and the other did not improve. The results support the feasibility of using an adapted VR program to treat fear of darkness without being an expert therapist. However, more detailed experimental studies need to be carried out in order to analyze its efficacy.


2002 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Schick

The following study is based on a sample of 241 9-13-year-old children (66 children from divorced parents, 175 children from non divorced parents). They were examined for differences regarding anxiety, self-esteem, different areas of competence, and degree of behavior problems. With a focus on the children’s experiences, the clinically significant differences were examined. Clinically significant differences, revealing more negative outcomes for the children of divorce, were only found for social anxiety and unstable performance. The frequency of clinical significant differences was independent of the length of time the parents had been separated. The perceived destructiveness of conflict between the parents one of four facets of interparental conflict in this study functioned as a central mediator of the statistically significant group differences. The children’s perception of the father’s social support was a less reliable indicator of variance. Further studies should try to make underlying theoretical assumptions about the effects of divorce more explicit, to distinguish clearly between mediating variables, and to investigate them with respect to specific divorce adjustment indicators.


Author(s):  
Carolin Szász-Janocha ◽  
Eva Vonderlin ◽  
Katajun Lindenberg

Zusammenfassung. Fragestellung: Das junge Störungsbild der Computerspiel- und Internetabhängigkeit hat in den vergangenen Jahren in der Forschung zunehmend an Aufmerksamkeit gewonnen. Durch die Aufnahme der „Gaming Disorder“ in die ICD-11 (International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems) wurde die Notwendigkeit von evidenzbasierten und wirksamen Interventionen avanciert. PROTECT+ ist ein kognitiv-verhaltenstherapeutisches Gruppentherapieprogramm für Jugendliche mit Symptomen der Computerspiel- und Internetabhängigkeit. Die vorliegende Studie zielt auf die Evaluation der mittelfristigen Effekte nach 4 Monaten ab. Methodik: N = 54 Patientinnen und Patienten im Alter von 9 bis 19 Jahren (M = 13.48; SD = 1.72) nahmen an der Frühinterventionsstudie zwischen April 2016 und Dezember 2017 in Heidelberg teil. Die Symptomschwere wurde zu Beginn, zum Abschluss der Gruppentherapie sowie nach 4 Monaten anhand von standardisierten Diagnostikinstrumenten erfasst. Ergebnisse: Mehrebenenanalysen zeigten eine signifikante Reduktion der Symptomschwere anhand der Computerspielabhängigkeitsskala (CSAS) nach 4 Monaten. Im Selbstbeurteilungsbogen zeigte sich ein kleiner Effekt (d = 0.35), im Elternurteil ein mittlerer Effekt (d = 0.77). Der Reliable Change Index, der anhand der Compulsive Internet Use Scale (CIUS) berechnet wurde, deutete auf eine starke Heterogenität im individuellen Symptomverlauf hin. Die Patientinnen und Patienten bewerteten das Programm zu beiden Follow-Up-Messzeitpunkten mit einer hohen Zufriedenheit. Schlussfolgerungen: Die vorliegende Arbeit stellt international eine der wenigen Studien dar, die eine Reduktion der Symptome von Computerspiel- und Internetabhängigkeit im Jugendalter über 4 Monate belegen konnte.


2020 ◽  
Vol 06 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sayed Md Mumtaz ◽  
Madhu Gupta ◽  
Ramesh K. Goyal

Abstract:: The placenta that maintains and regulates the growth of fetus, consists of various biological treasures nutrients such as cytomedines, vitamins, trace elements, amino acids, peptides, growth factors and other biologically active constituents. Their therapeutic usefulness can well define in the terms of biochemical mechanisms of various components present in it. Biomedical waste derived extract is also a panacea for treatment of various diseases. Placental therapy has been reported specifically to have potent action on recovery of diseases and tissue regeneration. Placental bioactive components and their multi targeting identity prompted us to compile the précised information on placental extract products. However, some findings are needed to be explored by scientific community to prove their clinical potential with clinically significant statistical conclusions. In the light of available information and the usefulness of the placental extract, it is necessary for the development of various formulations for various unmet meet for the treatment as well as access their adverse effects as well as contradictions and precisely evaluated in the short and in the long-term periods.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document