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Description
Early onset dementia (EOD), diagnosed earlier than 65, is an incurable, neurogenic disease that impacts every aspect of individual and family life as it progresses through three stages. The scope of caregiving broadens from initially helping with the instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) and progressing to assistance with essential activities of daily living (ADL) as dementia deepens. The physical demands of caregiving and emotional demands of caring about a loved one who is losing themselves are challenges that impact quality of life. Understanding the role that identity preservation plays as dementia deepens becomes a quality-of-life priority for caregivers and partners with dementia (PWD).
The goal of this qualitative study was to investigate changes in caregiver perceptions of themselves in the caregiving process and how their quality of life and that of the affected partner shifted in this process.
Publication Date
2021
Publisher
College of Education and Health Professions Honors Program
City
Fayetteville
Keywords
Research-Based
Disciplines
Cognitive Science | Communication Sciences and Disorders | Medicine and Health Sciences
Citation
Wood, C. (2021). Perspectives of Caregivers on Early Onset Dementia: An investigation of the role of attachment and shifts in identity. 2021 Honors Symposium. Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/coesym21/20
Comments
Advisors:
Fran Hagstrom, Ph. D.
Mohammad Haghighi, Ph.D.