Anticipatory dementia: a link between memory appraisals and concerns about developing Alzheimer's disease.
This exploratory study examines the link between memory appraisals and personal concerns about developing Alzheimer's disease. The sample of persons ages 40-60 includes adult children with a living parent who has Alzheimer's disease (N = 25) and a matched group with no family history of dementia (N = 25). Using two composite measures of memory appraisals, the results show significant bivariate and multivariate relationships between self-assessments of memory functioning and concerns about developing the disease. The findings also suggest that negative memory appraisals evoke concerns about developing Alzheimer's disease within both of the subsamples.
Cutler
S J
SJ
Department of Sociology, University of Vermont, Burlington 05405, USA.
Hodgson
L G
LG
D000328:Adult; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000523:psychology*; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012044:Regression Analysis