Relationship Between Knowledge and Types of Attitudes Towards People Living with Dementia

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between knowledge and attitudes towards dementia among adults. A cross-sectional online survey with purposive sampling was conducted in four district health centers in Taichung, Taiwan, in 2018. Knowledge was measured by the Taiwanese version of the Dementia Knowledge Assessment Scale. Attitudes towards people with dementia were measured by four kinds of feelings: discomfort, shame, avoidance, and fear. In total, 347 persons completed the questionnaire. Knowledge of dementia was modest. Higher education, a care-related background, chronic health conditions, experience caring for people with dementia, and knowledge of family history were related to higher knowledge of dementia. Attitudes towards people with dementia were grouped into four clusters: uncomfortable (22.2%), ashamed (2.6%), unfriendly (22.5%), and non-negative (52.7%). Knowledge of dementia was significantly related to the ashamed cluster but not to the other clusters. Lower education, a lack of caring experience, and a lack of knowledge of family history were related to uncomfortable feelings, and poorer financial satisfaction was related to uncomfortable, afraid, and avoidant feelings. The open-question expression of feelings towards dementia was more likely to be negative (55.3%). The public should be educated on knowledge of and friendly attitudes towards dementia.

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A Nationwide Survey of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia, Including Very Mild Dementia, in Taiwan

Chang-Yu Sun, Huey-Jane Lee, Shu-Chien Yang … (2014)

An increasing population of dementia patients produces substantial societal impacts. We assessed the prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and all-cause dementia, including very mild dementia (VMD), in Taiwan. In a nationwide population-based cross-sectional survey, participants were selected by computerized random sampling from all 19 Taiwan counties and were enrolled between December 2011 and March 2013. Cases were identified through in-person interviews based on the National Institute on Aging-Alzheimer’s Association clinical criteria. Demographic data and histories involving mental status and function in daily living were collected. The principal objective assessments were the Taiwanese Mental Status Examination and Clinical Dementia Rating. In all, 10,432 people aged 65 years or older (mean age 76.2±6.7, 52.3% women) were interviewed. The age-adjusted prevalence of all-cause dementia was 8.04% (95% CI 7.47–8.61), including a 3.25% (95% CI 2.89–3.61) prevalence of VMD; that of MCI was 18.76% (95% CI 17.91–19.61). Women had a higher prevalence than men of both all-cause dementia (9.71% vs. 6.36%) and MCI (21.63% vs. 15.57%). MCI affects a considerable portion of the population aged 65 and above in Taiwan. The inclusion of VMD yields dementia prevalence rates higher than those previously reported from Taiwan. Old age, female gender, and a low educational level are significant associated factors.

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A systematic review of the public's knowledge and understanding of Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Suzanne Cahill, Maria Pierce, Perla Werner … (2015)

This paper reports findings from a systematic review of the literature on the general public's knowledge and understanding of dementia/Alzheimer's disease. The key purpose of the review was to evaluate existing literature with specific attention paid to conceptual and methodological issues and to key findings. Over a 20-year period, 40 published articles satisfied the inclusion criteria. Only 4 of these were qualitative and 5 were cross-national. The review revealed a lack of consistency across studies regarding how knowledge was operationalized, approaches to sampling, response rates, and data collection instruments used including validated scales. A consistent finding across the vast majority of studies was the only fair to moderate knowledge and understanding the general public had. The most common misconception was that dementia was a normal part of aging and there was a lack of clarity about at which point normal age-related memory loss problems become severe enough to indicate dementia. Knowledge of dementia was found to be particularly poor among racial and ethnic minority groups where several myths about causes of dementia were found. Findings point to the need for more educational and advocacy programmes on dementia to be developed particularly in low-income to middle-income countries.

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African American, Chinese, and Latino family caregivers' impressions of the onset and diagnosis of dementia: cross-cultural similarities and differences.

Jane Cloutterbuck, Susan R Neary, Lin-Zhan … (2005)

We explored cross-cultural similarities and differences in minority family caregivers' perceptions of the onset and diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease in their relatives, with specific attention to clinical encounters. We performed a meta-synthesis of three qualitative studies conducted in Massachusetts with 22 African American, Latino, and Chinese caregivers. All participants conveyed striking similarities of thought about normalization of cognitive symptoms until one critical event, usually relocation, precipitated family awareness that an elder's behavior was not the result of "normal aging." A lack of knowledge about Alzheimer's disease, rather than culturally influenced beliefs, was the major deterrent to having an elder's memory assessed. Community physicians' failure to recognize Alzheimer's disease or refer to specialists was more problematic than language or ethnic differences. Physicians' disrespect for caregivers' concerns about memory loss was particularly noted by African Americans, stigmatization of persons with Alzheimer's disease was noted by Chinese, and fears that acculturation would end family home care was noted by Latinos. Amid ethnocultural differences, there are many similarities in needs that offer providers the possibility to unify quality improvements in Alzheimer's disease outreach, education, and physicians' services. Suggestions include providing the public with more confidential access to Alzheimer's disease information, increasing dementia awareness among community physicians, motivating clinicians to adopt culturally sensitive communication patterns, and providing community education to reduce normalization by families and stigmatization of persons with Alzheimer's disease.

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Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Int J Environ Res Public Health

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Int J Environ Res Public Health

Journal ID (publisher-id): ijerph

Title: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Publisher: MDPI

ISSN (Print): 1661-7827

ISSN (Electronic): 1660-4601

Publication date (Electronic): 26 May 2020

Publication date (Print): June 2020

Volume: 17

Issue: 11

Electronic Location Identifier: 3777

Affiliations

[1 ]Department of Healthcare Administration, Asia University, Taichung 41354, Taiwan; chiayuchang2@ 123456gmail.com

[2 ]South District Public Health Center, Taichung City Government, Taichung 402332, Taiwan

[3 ]School of Public Health, Research Center of Health Equity, College of Public Health, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 11031, Taiwan

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[* ]Correspondence: gingerhsu@ 123456seed.net.tw

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Hui-Chuan Hsu https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3830-2480

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Publisher ID: ijerph-17-03777

DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17113777

PMC ID: 7312095

PubMed ID: 32466533

SO-VID: cbd10c3e-262a-4a9a-982a-91feaf27a17c

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Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Relationship Between Knowledge and Types of Attitudes Towards People Living with Dementia

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Most cited references 31

A Nationwide Survey of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia, Including Very Mild Dementia, in Taiwan

A systematic review of the public's knowledge and understanding of Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

African American, Chinese, and Latino family caregivers' impressions of the onset and diagnosis of dementia: cross-cultural similarities and differences.

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