Learning new things is possible for people living with advanced dementia even without the use of structured interventions, a new study has found.
In a study of ten people with dementia, eight of whom lived in care facilities, they were given computer tablets to use for the first time in their lives.
Over the six week project, all ten participants gradually learned to use the tablet more independently. Although a staff member or loved one was there for support, the participants were asked to use the tablet as they wished.
Working independently, and sometimes in collaboration with each other, the participants learned how to negotiate the tablet to great effect.
One man who used to be restless and aggressive learned how to navigate to the Open Archive of SVT, the Swedish public television broadcaster. Staff noted that he would sit and watch for a long time, calmly and focused, which was a side of him they had never seen before.
Another participant who used to do orienteering started using the tablet to check competition results.
Author of the study, Elias Ingebrand of Linköping University, Sweden, said he was surprised to find that people with dementia could solve the mysteries of the tablet also without help from staff or loved ones, by collaborating and learning from each other.
“My thesis has an impact on how we look at people with dementia,” he says.
“They are not to be treated as children, but as people who still have a will and an incentive to do things.
“This is ultimately about having the opportunity to participate in meaningful activities based on the person’s own interests and desires.”
While previous studies have shown people with dementia have the ability to learn things, this is understood to be the first time that learning has been studied without any particular instructions.
Ingebrand believes that in care environments, where staff are often too busy to spend the time they would like with individual patients, enabling people with dementia to learn individually or in collaboration could be a feasible solution, based on the findings of this study.
“I want to take my research further by finding out how to make use of the knowledge and expertise of people with dementia in creating meaningful activities,” he says.
“Maybe someone could initiate an activity and teach others in the care facility. Perhaps a small seminar, or knitting.
“The right to lifelong learning should include everyone; the important thing is getting a chance to learn.”
