Living with dementia is often regarded as a process of slowly losing one’s self. This understanding, however, overlooks the many ways in which individuals with dementia express their selves. By departing from the experience of persons with Alzheimer’s dementia themselves, this research project explores how Alzheimer’s dementia impacts the self in a multidimensional sense.
When I worked in spiritual care, loved ones of people I cared for often expressed things to me like 'what is the point of visiting my mom, she won't remember my visit, she had become an empty shell'. At the same time I saw people with dementia express themselves in various ways. These variaties of the ways in which people express their self is what I want to understand.
Our approach
In this PhD project Tessa van Woerkum-Rooker MA, under the supervision of prof. dr. Slors, dr. Scherer-Rath and dr. Roy Dings from Radboud Universiteit and prof. dr. Marcel Olde Rikkert and dr. Els van Wijngaarden from Radboudumc will explore how a broader, multidimensional understanding of the self offers new possibilities in understanding the impact of Alzheimer dementia on one’s self. Our approach consists of a philosophical inquiry, combined with interviews with and observations of persons with Alzheimer’s dementia.
Projected outcome
The outcomes of this project will advance our theoretical understanding of the self in dementia, contribute to person centered dementia care practices and counter stigmatizing beliefs surrounding dementia.
