Horizons of Meaning in Dementia: Retained and Shifting Narratives

Phinney, Alison

doi:10.1080/15528030.2011.563210

Cited by 10 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…We also nd that due to the changed perceptions of themselves, their interaction with the environment changes, which also causes various emotional responses, ranging from mild shocks and frustrations to deep feelings of sadness and anger [23]. On the contrary, researchers [36,37] nd that the sufferer does not change at the core and that they remain the same person.…”

Section: Loss Of Self and Identitymentioning

confidence: 84%

“…The question "why" is widespread: "why me, can I manage, why did I become ill [23], why exactly me [40]?" We further conclude that older people with dementia also ask themselves what they can learn from the illness [23] and how the disease will progress, and what will happen to them [34,36]. Such questions, which most often remain without answers or satisfying answers, bring older people with dementia unrest, frustration, and feelings of uncertainty [23].…”

Section: Unanswered Questionsmentioning

confidence: 87%

“…The ethnographic approach [27], phenomenology [23,35,36], grounded theory [37] and observation [27,36,38] were used. Interview as a data collecting method was used the most frequently [23,27,33,34,[36][37][38][39][40]. Also, focus groups were used for collecting data [33].…”

Section: Study Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many of the studies that we have analysed [23,34,36,37,40] show that people with dementia often ask questions that mostly remain unanswered. The question "why" is widespread: "why me, can I manage, why did I become ill [23], why exactly me [40]?"…”

Section: Unanswered Questionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Spiritual life is an integral part of an individual's life, and that holds true for people with dementia, and therefore the disease has a kind of sense for the person. Living a life in such a way gives rise to a new perspective regarding the situation at hand; the disease gives new meaning and sense to life, and therefore, life, or what remains of it, becomes worth living [23,36].…”

Section: Insight Into the Situationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Role and Meaning of Spirituality in Older People Living With Dementia: A Systematic Review

Reljić

Fekonja

Kmetec

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: Spiritual care is a component of holistic nursing care, and it is a crucial element in providing person-centred care of older people living with dementia. The review aimed to find a deeper meaning and provide a profound interpretation of the role of spirituality from the perspective of older people living with dementia.Methods: The systematic review was conducted using Preferred Reporting for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Four databases: CINAHL, PubMed, Science Direct, EBSCO host and reference lists were searched for studies published by February 2020. The Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument were used to assess the quality of studies, and the data were synthesised using thematic analysis. Results: Ten studies were included in the systematic review. Two main themes: (1) Spirituality as an inner source of power and (2) Spirituality as connectedness described the role and meaning of spirituality in older people living with dementia. Findings show the importance of spirituality as an inner source which gives people with dementia strength in facing dementia and also highlighted the role and meaning of connectedness with self, others and God. Relationships with family and the community is an essential reflection of spiritual life and represent a source of incentive and joy for older people with dementia.Conclusion: These findings provide new insights based on the qualitative perspective of older people living with dementia. This review offers nursing staff a broader and more in-depth insight into the role and meaning of spirituality as experienced by older people living with dementia and thus encourage the implementation of spiritual care as an integral part of providing holistic person-centred care.

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Section: Loss Of Self and Identitymentioning

confidence: 84%

Section: Unanswered Questionsmentioning

confidence: 87%

Section: Study Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Unanswered Questionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Insight Into the Situationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Role and Meaning of Spirituality in Older People Living With Dementia: A Systematic Review

Reljić

Fekonja

Kmetec

et al. 2020

Preprint

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The longitudinal relationship between meaning in life, depressive symptoms, life satisfaction, and cognitive functioning for older adults with Alzheimer’s disease

et al. 2022

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Studies show the importance of the personal experience of meaning in life for older adults, but adults with dementia have been largely excluded from this research. The current study examined the longitudinal predictive effect of meaning in life for the psychological and cognitive functioning of older adults with Alzheimer’s disease and whether cognitive decline predicted presence of meaning in life. On three yearly measurement occasions, presence of meaning in life, depressive symptoms, life satisfaction, and cognitive functioning were assessed in structured interviews with a convenience sample of 140 older adults with Alzheimer’s disease from nine nursing homes in Belgium. Cross-lagged panel and latent growth curve models were used to analyze the longitudinal relationships between the variables. Over the three measurement waves, participants with higher presence of meaning reported lower depressive symptoms one year later. Presence of meaning and life satisfaction predicted each other over time, but only between the first and second wave. The analyses showed no strong evidence for a longitudinal association between meaning in life and cognitive functioning in either direction. The findings emphasize the importance of the experience of meaning in life for the psychological functioning of older adults with Alzheimer’s disease. The lack of evidence for associations between meaning and cognitive functioning questions the prevailing view that intact cognitive abilities are a necessity for experiencing meaning. More attention to the potential of meaning interventions for persons with dementia is warranted.

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

et al. 2021

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Meaning in life has grown into a topic of great interest in psychological research.Conceptually, scholars differentiate between sources and components of meaning. However, the current scholarly views on meaning are highly cognitive and it is unclear to what extent they correspond with the understanding of lay people with cognitive difficulties, like those with Alzheimer's disease. Using directed content analysis, we analyzed short descriptions of meaning in life of 126 older adults with Alzheimer's disease, exploring whether the components (i.e., coherence, purpose, significance) and sources from the current literature could be identified and what additional themes emerged in their accounts. Replicating findings in other populations, family and relationships were the most prominent sources.Coherence and purpose were each described by 15% of participants, significance was almost not mentioned. We discuss the entanglement of components and sources in people's descriptions and the possibility of a connection facet underlying meaning. We provide evidence for a distinction between cognitive and felt coherence and show that many participants talked about fulfilled and purpose instead of future-oriented purpose, emphasizing the need for a developmental understanding of meaning.

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Horizons of Meaning in Dementia: Retained and Shifting Narratives

Cited by 10 publications

References 25 publications

The Role and Meaning of Spirituality in Older People Living With Dementia: A Systematic Review

The Role and Meaning of Spirituality in Older People Living With Dementia: A Systematic Review

The longitudinal relationship between meaning in life, depressive symptoms, life satisfaction, and cognitive functioning for older adults with Alzheimer’s disease

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

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