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The Dialectics of Dementia: With Particular Reference to Alzheimer's Disease

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 November 2008

Tom Kitwood
Tom Kitwood
Affiliation:
Department of Interdisciplinary Human Studies, University of Bradford, UK.
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Abstract

A new theory of the dementing process in old age is presented in outline. Its main focus is on the dialectical interplay between neurological and social-psychological factors, with special emphasis on aspects of the latter which deprive a neurologically impaired individual of his or her personhood. The account of dementia so derived is more comprehensive and less deterministic than those which are based on the simpler versions of a ‘medical model’. Also, it opens up the way for a more personal and optimistic view of caregiving.

Type
Research Article
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 10 , Issue 2 , June 1990 , pp. 177 - 196
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1990

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References

NOTES

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