Dementia and the problem of loneliness: how faith communities can help

References

• Buckner, S., Darlington, N., Woodward, M., Buswell, M., Mathie, E., Arthur, A., Lafortune, L., Killett, A., Mayrhofer, A., Thurman, J., & Goodman, C. (2019). Dementia friendly communities in England: A scoping study. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 34(8), 1235–1243. https://doi.org/10.1002/gps5123
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Burholt, V., Windle, G., & Morgan, D. (2017). A social model of loneliness: The roles of disability, social resources, and cognitive impairment. The Gerontologist, 57(6), 1020–1030. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnw125
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Butler, R. N. (1969). Age-ism: Another form of bigotry. The Gerontologist, 4(4, Part 1), 243–246. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/9.4_Part_1.243
   Google Scholar
• Cacioppo, J. T., Amaral, D. G., Blanchard, J. J., Cameron, J. L., Carter, C. W., Crews, D., Fiske, S., Heatherton, T., Johnson, M. K., Kozak, M. J., Levenson, R. W., Lord, C., Miller, E. K., Ochsner, K., Raichle, M. E., Shea, M. T., Taylor, S. E., Young, L. J., & Quinn, K. J. (2007). Social neuroscience: Progress and implications for mental health. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 2(2), 99–123. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6916.2007.00032.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Cacioppo, J. T., Hawkley, L. C., & Berntson, G. G. (2003). The anatomy of loneliness. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 12(3), 71–74. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8721.01232
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Carder, K. L. (2019). Ministry with the forgotten: Dementia through a spiritual lens. Abingdon Press.
   Google Scholar
• Charles, S. T., Röcke, C., Zadeh, R. S., Martin, M., Boker, S., & Scholz, U. (2021). Leveraging daily social experiences to motivate health aging. Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 76(S2), S157–S166. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbab028
   Google Scholar
• Epps, F., Heidbreder, V., Alexander, K., Tomlinson, A., Freeman, V., & Williams, N. (2021). A dementia-friendly church: How can the African American church support families affected by dementia? Dementia (London, England), 20(2), 556–565. https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301219900416
   PubMedGoogle Scholar
• Gore, J., Toliver, J., Moore, M. A., Aycock, D., & Epps, F. (2022). A mixed-methods formative evaluation of a dementia-friendly congregation program for Black churches. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(8), 4498–4516. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19084498
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Harper, L. C. (2020). On vanishing: Mortality, dementia, and what it means to disappear. Catapult.
   Google Scholar
• Hawkley, L. C., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2007). Aging and loneliness: Downhill quickly? Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16(4), 187–191. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2007.00501.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Herrmann, L. K., Welter, E., Leverenz, J., Lerner, A. J., Udelson, N., Kanetsky, C., & Sajatovic, M. (2017). A systematic review of dementia-related stigma research: Can we move the stigma dial? American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 26(3), 316–331. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jagp2017.09.006
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., Baker, M., Harris, T., & Stephenson, D. (2015). Loneliness and social isolation as risk factors for mortality: A meta-analytic review. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 10(2), 227–237. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691614568352
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Idler, E. L. (1987). Religious involvement and the health of the elderly: Some hypotheses and an initial test. Social Forces, 66(1), 226–238. https://doi.org/10.2307/2578909
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Johnston, D. (2020). Reclaiming joy together. Respite for All Foundation.
   Google Scholar
• Kevern, P., & Primrose, D. (2020). Changes in measures of dementia awareness in UK church congregations following a ‘dementia-friendly’ intervention: A pre-post cohort study. Religions, 11(7), 337–349. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11070337
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Kitwood, T. (1997). Dementia reconsidered: The person comes first. Open University Press.
   Google Scholar
• Koenig, H. G., VanderWeele, T. J., & Peteet, J. R. (2023). Handbook of religion and health (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press.
   Google Scholar
• Krause, N. M. (2008). Aging in the church: How social relationships affect health. Templeton Foundation Press.
   Google Scholar
• Levin, J. (2017). “For they knew not what it was”: Rethinking the tacit narrative history of religion and health research. Journal of Religion and Health, 56(1), 28–46. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-016-0325-5
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Levy, B. R., Slade, M. D., Change, E.-S., Kannoth, S., & Wang, S.-Y. (2020). Ageism amplifies cost and prevalence of health conditions. The Gerontologist, 60(1), 174–181. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gny131
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Link, B. G., & Phelan, J. C. (2001). Conceptualizing stigma. Annual Review of Sociology, 26(1), 363–385. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.27.1.363
   Google Scholar
• Local Government Association. (2012). Developing dementia friendly communities: Learning and guidance for local authorities.
   Google Scholar
• Long-Higgins, B. (2017). Rules of engagement: Helpful guidelines for talking about aging and ageism in a congregational setting. In J. G. Guess & B. A. Powell (Eds.), Age-friendly congregations: A new curriculum that explores how to minister with, to, and for older adults (pp. 19–23). United Church of Christ Council for Health and Human Service Ministries.
   Google Scholar
• McFadden, S. H. (2021). Dementia-friendly communities: Why we need them and how we can create them. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
   Google Scholar
• McFadden, S. H., & McFadden, J. T. (2011). Aging together: Dementia, friendship, and flourishing communities. The Johns Hopkins University Press.
   Google Scholar
• Murthy, V. H. (2020). Together: The healing power of human connection in a sometimes lonely world. HarperCollins.
   Google Scholar
• National Institutes of Health. (2022). Notice of Special Interest (NOSI): Administrative Supplements to Support Research Infrastructure on Exposome Studies in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and AD-Related Dementias (ADRD). https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-AG-22-022.html
   Google Scholar
• Nelson, T. D. (Ed.). (2002). Ageism: Stereotyping and prejudice against older persons. The MIT Press.
   Google Scholar
• Payne, B. P., & McFadden, S. H. (1994). From loneliness to solitude: Religious and spiritual journeys in late life. In L. E. Thomas & S. A. Eisenhandler (Eds.), Aging and the religious dimension (pp. 13–27). Auburn House.
   Google Scholar
• Plunkett, R., & Chen, P. (2016). Supporting healthy dementia culture: An exploratory study of the church. Journal of Religion and Health, 55(6), 1917–1928. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-015-0165-8
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Post, S. G. (2022). Dignity for deeply forgetful people: How caregivers can meet the challenges of Alzheimer’s disease. The Johns Hopkins University Press.
   Google Scholar
• Riesman, D. (with N. Glazer & R. Denney). (1961). The lonely crowd (Abridged ed.). Yale University Press.
   Google Scholar
• Slater, P. (1976). The pursuit of loneliness: American culture at the breaking point (Rev. ed.). Beacon Press.
   Google Scholar
• Stites, S. D., Midgett, S., Mechanic-Hamilton, D., Zuelsdorff, M., Glover, C. M., Marquez, D. X., Balls-Berry, J. E., Streitz, M., Babulal, G., Trani, J.-F., Nenderson, J. N., Barnes, L. L., Karlawish, J., & Wolk, D. A. (2022). Establishing a framework for gathering structural and social determinants of health in Alzheimer’s disease research centers. The Gerontologist, 62(5), 694–703. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnab182
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sundström, A., Adolfsson, A. N., Nordin, M., & Adolfsson, R. (2020). Loneliness increases the risk of all-cause dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 75(5), 919–926. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbz139
   Google Scholar
• Sutin, A. R., Stephan, Y., Luchetti, M., & Terracciano, A. (2020). Loneliness and risk of dementia. Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 75(7), 1414–1422. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gby112
   Google Scholar
• Upenieks, L. (2023). With you until the end of age? A longitudinal study of changes in religiosity and loneliness in later life. Research on Aging, 45(3–4), 299–319. https://doi.org/10.1177/01640275221104720
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Werner, P., Mittelman, M. S., Goldstein, D., & Heinik, J. (2011). Family stigma and caregiver burden in Alzheimer’s disease. The Gerontologist, 52(1), 89–97. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnr117
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Yeginsu, C. (2018, January 17). U.K. appoints a Minister for Loneliness. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/17/world/europe/uk-britain-loneliness.html
   Google Scholar