The influence of the age of dementia onset on college students\u2019 stigmatic attributions towards a person with dementia

Perla Werner,Lilach Raviv-Turgeman,Patrick W Corrigan

doi:10.1186/s12877-020-1505-4

Perla Werner, Lilach Raviv-Turgeman + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-020-1505-4

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Abstract

BackgroundResearch in the area of public stigma and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is limited to examining stigmatic beliefs towards persons aged 65 and over (i.e., persons with late-onset dementia). The aim of the present study was to compare college students’ stigmatic attributions towards an older and a younger person with AD, using an attributional model of stigma.MethodA cross-sectional study was conducted with 375 college students (mean age = 25.5, 58.9% female, 64.3% Jewish) who answered a computerized, self-administered, structured questionnaire after being presented with one of two randomly distributed vignettes varying in the age of the person with AD – 80 or 50 years of age. Cognitive, emotional and behavioral attributions of stigma were assessed using an adapted version of the Attribution Questionnaire. Other variables examined included background information, experiences and concerns about developing AD. T-tests and Ordinary Least Square (OLS) hierarchical regressions were used to analyze results.ResultsSimilar to previous studies, students’ levels of dementia stigma were low to moderate. Negative attributions were consistently and significantly higher (β = .17 to .33, p < .01), and positive attributions were significantly lower (β = −.26, p < .01) when the target person was younger rather than older.ConclusionThe differences in stigmatic beliefs towards a younger and older person with AD point to the theoretical and practical importance of clearly stating the age of the target person in stigma studies as well as in programs aimed at reducing public stigma towards persons with AD.

Highlights

Research in the area of public stigma and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is limited to examining stigmatic beliefs towards persons aged 65 and over
Participants exposed to the vignette presenting a person with young-onset dementia (YOD) reported significantly higher levels of cognitive attributions, negative emotions, and attributions of segregation and coercion, than those exposed to the late-onset dementia (LOD) vignette
Positive emotions and willingness to help were significantly lower in the group exposed to the YOD, compared to those exposed to the LOD vignette

Summary

Introduction

Research in the area of public stigma and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is limited to examining stigmatic beliefs towards persons aged 65 and over (i.e., persons with late-onset dementia). The aim of the present study was to address this gap by comparing college students’ stigmatic beliefs towards an older and a younger person with AD, using an attributional model of stigma, which assumes that stigma includes three types of attributions: cognitive attributions or stereotypes about the person with the disease; emotional attributions, including negative and positive emotions; and behavioral attributions, including behavioral discrimination as well as willingness to help Wile this conceptualization was developed originally for mental illness stigma [14], a recent study demonstrated that public stigma in the area of dementia is characterized by a similar cognitive, emotional, and behavioral process [15]

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