Psychological theories of dementia

Abstract

Dementia is not a normal part of aging. It is a slow disease, starting with mild memory problems and ending with severe brain damage. It is not possible to understand, diagnose and properly treat dementia without the contribution of psychological research, which has made and will certainly continue to make an important contribution in this field. It plays a major role in the development of programs aimed at reducing the risk of dementia or awareness programs. A bio-psychosocial approach to understanding the experience of dementia provides an appropriate model for identifying factors that determine the nature of dementia, disease progression, and appropriate interventions. This article focuses on the psychological perspective of the nature and experience of dementia. It provides a theoretical explanation of the symptoms of dementia from the major schools of thought in psychology, namely the psychodynamic, behavioral, developmental, and cognitive schools.