Participatory Arts: Reflections on the Benefits of Creativity-Based Interventions in Dementia Care
Main Article Content
Abstract
In this editorial, we present an overview of arts programs used in dementia care that have at their core the objectives of performing and creating art with people living with dementia. We look at the commonalities between leading arts programs and provide a case study of one such program conducted with elderly nuns at convents in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and articulate the potential benefits of these arts programs as worthy of pursuit and aligned with essential goals of intervention. We offer comments on the current state of relevant research in the United States and reflect on future directions for continued programming and study.
Article Details
How to Cite
KAPLAN, Daniel B.; GLAZNER, Gary.
Participatory Arts: Reflections on the Benefits of Creativity-Based Interventions in Dementia Care.
Medical Research Archives, [S.l.], v. 13, n. 4, apr. 2025.
ISSN 2375-1924.
Available at: <https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/6462>. Date accessed: 15 may 2025.
doi: https://doi.org/10.18103/mra.v13i4.6462.
Section
Editorial
The Medical Research Archives grants authors the right to publish and reproduce the unrevised contribution in whole or in part at any time and in any form for any scholarly non-commercial purpose with the condition that all publications of the contribution include a full citation to the journal as published by the Medical Research Archives.
References
1. Arvanitakis Z, Shah R, Bennett D. Diagnosis and management of dementia: Review. JAMA. 2019;322(16):1589. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.4782
2. Cerejeira, J, Lagarto, L, Mukaetova-Ladinska, EB. Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. Frontiers in Neurology. 2012; 3:73. doi:10.3389/fneur.2012.00073
3. Swinnen, A, de Medeiros, K. Participatory arts programs in residential dementia care: Playing with language differences. Dementia. 2018; 17(6):763-774. doi:10.1177/1471301217729985
4. Curtis, A, Gibson, L, O’Brien, M, Roe, B. (2018). Systematic review of the impact of arts for health activities on health, wellbeing and quality of life of older people living in care homes. Dementia. 2018; 17(6):645-669. doi:10.1177/1471301217740960
5. de Medeiros K, Basting A. “Shall I compare thee to a dose of Donepezil?”: Cultural arts interventions in dementia care research. The Gerontologist. 2013;54(3):344-353. doi:10.1093/geront/gnt055
6. Basting AD. Forget Memory: Creating Better Lives for People with Dementia. Johns Hopkins University Press; 2009.
7. Kaplan DB, Glazner G, Drake C. Group-based participatory arts interventions validate personhood for those living with dementia. Advances in Social Science and Culture. 2023;5(2). doi:10.22158/assc.v5n2p1
8. Cousins, E, Tischler, V, Garabedian, C, Dening, T. A taxonomy of arts interventions for people with dementia. The Gerontologist. 2020;60(1):124-134. doi:10.1093/geront/gnz024
9. Kitwood T, Bredin K. Towards a theory of dementia care: Personhood and well-being. Ageing and Society. 1992;12(03):269-287. doi:10.1017/s0144686x0000502x
10. Levenberg K, George DR, Lokon E. Opening minds through art: A preliminary study evaluating the effects of a creative-expression program on persons living with dementia and their primary care partners. Dementia. 2021;20(7):2412-2423. doi:10.1177/1471301221997290
11. Friedman JK. The Songwriting WorksTM Model: Enhancing Brain Health and Fitness Through Collaborative Musical Composition and Performance. In: Hartman-Stein P, LaRue A, eds. Enhancing Cognitive Fitness in Adults. Springer; 2011:325-360.
12. Genné MD, Anderson C. Coming Alive: Kairos Dance Theatre’s Dancing Heart™ – Vital Elders Moving in Community. In: Hartman-Stein P, LaRue A, eds. Enhancing Cognitive Fitness in Adults. Springer; 2011:285-300.
13. Holzman L, Fridley M, Massad S. Creating a New Performance of Dementia. In: Lester JN, O'Reilly M, eds. The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Critical Perspectives on Mental Health. Palgrave Macmillan; 2021.
14. Vigliotti AA., Vernon MC, George DR. Evaluating the benefits of the TimeSlips creative storytelling program for persons with varying degrees of dementia severity. American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease & Other Dementias. 2019;34(3):163-170.
15. Swinnen A, de Medeiros K. “play” and people living with dementia: A humanities-based inquiry of TimeSlips and the alzheimer’s poetry project. The Gerontologist. 2017;58(2):261-269. doi:10.1093/geront/gnw196
16. Ward MC, Milligan C, Rose E, Elliott M, Wainwright BR. The benefits of community-based participatory arts activities for people living with dementia: A thematic scoping review. Arts & Health. 2020;13(3):213-239. doi:10.1080/17533015.2020.1781217
17. Zeilig H, Killick J, Fox C. The participative arts for people living with a dementia: A critical review. International Journal of Ageing and Later Life. 2014;9(1):7-34. doi:10.3384/ijal.1652-8670.14238
18. Glazner G, Kaplan DB. The Alzheimer’s poetry project. JAMA. 2018;320(22):2294. doi:10.1001/ jama.2018.16340
19. Dickinson E, "Hope" is the thing with feathers. In: Higginson TW, Todd ML, eds. Poems by Emily Dickinson: Second Series; 1891.
20. Piller C. Doctored: Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer’s. One Signal Publishers, Atria; 2025.
21. Jewett C, Rosenbluth T. Court pause on Trump cuts to medical research funds is expanded nationwide. The New York Times. February 11, 2025. Accessed March 29, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/11/health/nih-research-funding-lawsuit-injunction.html?searchResultPosition=2.
2. Cerejeira, J, Lagarto, L, Mukaetova-Ladinska, EB. Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. Frontiers in Neurology. 2012; 3:73. doi:10.3389/fneur.2012.00073
3. Swinnen, A, de Medeiros, K. Participatory arts programs in residential dementia care: Playing with language differences. Dementia. 2018; 17(6):763-774. doi:10.1177/1471301217729985
4. Curtis, A, Gibson, L, O’Brien, M, Roe, B. (2018). Systematic review of the impact of arts for health activities on health, wellbeing and quality of life of older people living in care homes. Dementia. 2018; 17(6):645-669. doi:10.1177/1471301217740960
5. de Medeiros K, Basting A. “Shall I compare thee to a dose of Donepezil?”: Cultural arts interventions in dementia care research. The Gerontologist. 2013;54(3):344-353. doi:10.1093/geront/gnt055
6. Basting AD. Forget Memory: Creating Better Lives for People with Dementia. Johns Hopkins University Press; 2009.
7. Kaplan DB, Glazner G, Drake C. Group-based participatory arts interventions validate personhood for those living with dementia. Advances in Social Science and Culture. 2023;5(2). doi:10.22158/assc.v5n2p1
8. Cousins, E, Tischler, V, Garabedian, C, Dening, T. A taxonomy of arts interventions for people with dementia. The Gerontologist. 2020;60(1):124-134. doi:10.1093/geront/gnz024
9. Kitwood T, Bredin K. Towards a theory of dementia care: Personhood and well-being. Ageing and Society. 1992;12(03):269-287. doi:10.1017/s0144686x0000502x
10. Levenberg K, George DR, Lokon E. Opening minds through art: A preliminary study evaluating the effects of a creative-expression program on persons living with dementia and their primary care partners. Dementia. 2021;20(7):2412-2423. doi:10.1177/1471301221997290
11. Friedman JK. The Songwriting WorksTM Model: Enhancing Brain Health and Fitness Through Collaborative Musical Composition and Performance. In: Hartman-Stein P, LaRue A, eds. Enhancing Cognitive Fitness in Adults. Springer; 2011:325-360.
12. Genné MD, Anderson C. Coming Alive: Kairos Dance Theatre’s Dancing Heart™ – Vital Elders Moving in Community. In: Hartman-Stein P, LaRue A, eds. Enhancing Cognitive Fitness in Adults. Springer; 2011:285-300.
13. Holzman L, Fridley M, Massad S. Creating a New Performance of Dementia. In: Lester JN, O'Reilly M, eds. The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Critical Perspectives on Mental Health. Palgrave Macmillan; 2021.
14. Vigliotti AA., Vernon MC, George DR. Evaluating the benefits of the TimeSlips creative storytelling program for persons with varying degrees of dementia severity. American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease & Other Dementias. 2019;34(3):163-170.
15. Swinnen A, de Medeiros K. “play” and people living with dementia: A humanities-based inquiry of TimeSlips and the alzheimer’s poetry project. The Gerontologist. 2017;58(2):261-269. doi:10.1093/geront/gnw196
16. Ward MC, Milligan C, Rose E, Elliott M, Wainwright BR. The benefits of community-based participatory arts activities for people living with dementia: A thematic scoping review. Arts & Health. 2020;13(3):213-239. doi:10.1080/17533015.2020.1781217
17. Zeilig H, Killick J, Fox C. The participative arts for people living with a dementia: A critical review. International Journal of Ageing and Later Life. 2014;9(1):7-34. doi:10.3384/ijal.1652-8670.14238
18. Glazner G, Kaplan DB. The Alzheimer’s poetry project. JAMA. 2018;320(22):2294. doi:10.1001/ jama.2018.16340
19. Dickinson E, "Hope" is the thing with feathers. In: Higginson TW, Todd ML, eds. Poems by Emily Dickinson: Second Series; 1891.
20. Piller C. Doctored: Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer’s. One Signal Publishers, Atria; 2025.
21. Jewett C, Rosenbluth T. Court pause on Trump cuts to medical research funds is expanded nationwide. The New York Times. February 11, 2025. Accessed March 29, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/11/health/nih-research-funding-lawsuit-injunction.html?searchResultPosition=2.