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American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias logoLink to American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias
. 2009 Feb-Mar;24(1):11–20. doi: 10.1177/1533317508318472

Elderspeak Communication: Impact on Dementia Care

Kristine N Williams 1, Ruth Herman 2, Byron Gajewski 3, Kristel Wilson 4
PMCID: PMC2823803  NIHMSID: NIHMS172973  PMID: 18591210

Abstract

Resistiveness to care is common in older adults with dementia. Resistiveness to care disrupts nursing care, increasing costs of care by 30%. Elderspeak (infantilizing communication used by nursing staff) may trigger resistiveness to care in individuals with dementia. Videotaped care episodes (n = 80) of nursing home residents with dementia (n = 20) were coded for type of staff communication (normal talk and elderspeak) and subsequent resident behavior (cooperative or resistive to care). Bayesian statistical analysis tested relationships between staff communication and subsequent resident resistiveness to care. The probability of resistiveness to care varied significantly with communication (Bayes P = .0082). An increased probability of resistiveness to care occurred with elderspeak (.55, 95% CrI, .44-.66), compared with normal talk (.26, 95% CrI, .12-.44). Communication training has been shown to reduce elderspeak and may reduce resistiveness to care in future research.

Keywords: dementia care, communication, problem behaviors, resistiveness to care

Full Text

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Contributor Information

Kristine N. Williams, School of Nursing, University of Kansas Medical Center, kwilliams1@kumc.edu .

Ruth Herman, School of Nursing, University of Kansas Medical Center.

Byron Gajewski, School of Allied Health, University of Kansas Kansas City, Kansas.

Kristel Wilson, School of Nursing, University of Kansas Medical Center.

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