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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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Maintaining friendships in early stage dementia
— factors to consider | | Author(s) | Phyllis Braudy Harris |
| Journal title | Dementia: the international journal of social research and practice, vol 11, no 3, May 2012 |
| Pages | pp 305-314 |
| Source | http://dem.sagepub.com/ |
| Keywords | Dementia ; Friendship ; Adjustment ; Attitude. |
| Annotation | As dementia becomes more severe it can take its toll on social relationships. Many friends withdraw and 'disappear', because they can no longer bear to see the changes that are taking place in their diagnosed friend. However the need for true friends becomes even more important as sufferers struggle to maintain their sense of self. This study focuses on friendships that remain and seeks to answer two questions: Do remaining friendships have a meaningful impact on the experience of early stage dementia? What factors are crucial to the retention of these friendships? The authors examine in depth the experiences of eight people in the early stages of dementia who have been able to maintain strong friendships despite the diagnosis (all female, mean age 75 years, mean time since diagnosis three years). Factors that seem to play important roles are: the importance and quality of the friendships, mutually beneficial relationships, core values, acceptance and disclosure, and recognition of strengths and understanding of limitations. (JL). |
| Accession Number | CPA-120720003 A |
| Classmark | EA: DS:SX: DR: DP |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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