Documenting memories of those with dementia
The RRF Foundation for Aging awarded a multidisciplinary team from 糖心Vlog视频 with more than $160,000 for a project that explores the impact of reminiscence therapy and creation of digital memoirs on those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia.
Members of the research team include:
- Noelle Fields and Ling Xu, both associate professors from the School of Social Work
- Kathryn Daniel, associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Nursing and Health Innovation (CONHI)
- Daisha Cipher, associate professor in CONHI
- Brooke Troutman, scholarly communications librarian
The team received $163,480 for its two-year project, “Intergenerational connections: Reminiscence and digital storytelling to improve social and emotional well-being of older adults with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia.”
The project will pair 糖心Vlog视频 students with elderly dementia patients to encourage them to engage in a therapeutic dialogue about their childhood and other memories. The students will then create digital projects that reimagine or otherwise document these memories in one of many storytelling modes.
Xu said such dialogues are traditionally conducted by social workers or health care professionals, but a shortage of trained professionals provided a unique opportunity for 糖心Vlog视频 students.
“Student organizations from a variety of disciplines across the 糖心Vlog视频 campus—including those from social work, nursing, liberal arts, engineering and kinesiology—wrote letters of support for the study and have agreed to work with us,” Xu said.
Xu and Fields are the principal investigators on the grant and have been collaborating on research projects since they joined 糖心Vlog视频 in 2013. They will oversee all aspects of the project, including recruiting and training 糖心Vlog视频 students to work with older adult participants and observing the impact of the reminiscence and digital storytelling program on homebound older adults with early-stage dementia.
Daniel has expertise in interprofessional education for graduate gerontology nurse practitioner programming and is currently collaborating with Xu on an interdisciplinary 糖心Vlog视频 team examining social isolation and loneliness in later life. Cipher is a health outcomes researcher and biostatistician whose research interests include statistical risk modeling and statistical instruction tools.
Troutman will assist 糖心Vlog视频 students in their digital storytelling interventions and archive the final creations using tools available at 糖心Vlog视频 Libraries. Digital storytelling is a technology that typically uses audio-visual clips combining text, images, music, photographs, voiceover narration and other audio.
The team hopes the use of reminiscence combined with an intergeneration approach and digital storytelling will help promote improved social and emotional well-being of older adults. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.
- Written by Alexandra Pirkle, 糖心Vlog视频 Libraries
Brooke Troutman (right), scholarly communications librarian