Perceived stigma towards Alzheimer's disease and related dementia among Chinese older adults: do social networks matter?

In mainland China, as the population ages, Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD) is estimated to increase among Chinese older adults. Chinese older adults tend to hold stigmatising beliefs about ADRD that in turn affect their help-seeking behaviour and receipt of prevention and treatm...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ageing and society 2022-05, Vol.42 (5), p.1100-1116
Main Authors: Gao, Xiang, Sun, Fei, Prieto, Lucas, Iyengar, Vijeth
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alzheimer's disease
Asian Americans
Behavior
Chinese Americans
Cognition
Cognitive ability
Cognitive aspects
Dementia
Epidemiology
Evaluation
Help seeking behavior
Illnesses
Knowledge
Mental depression
Older people
Population growth
Prevention programs
Schizophrenia
Social networks
Stigma
Support services
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Summary:In mainland China, as the population ages, Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD) is estimated to increase among Chinese older adults. Chinese older adults tend to hold stigmatising beliefs about ADRD that in turn affect their help-seeking behaviour and receipt of prevention and treatment. The Framework Integrating Normative Influences on Stigma provides a rationale for Chinese older adult's stigma about ADRD. Questionnaires were administered in person to 754 older adults (42% male, mean age = 69.54 years) from two urban communities in mainland China. We examined ADRD stigma and the associations with real-life exposure, knowledge of ADRD, health conditions and social networks. This study found that Chinese older adults who had good family quality, lower depression (as measured by the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale) and better cognitive health (as measured by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment) were more likely to have lower perceived stigma. Conversely, those individuals who experienced neglect and had more ADRD knowledge exhibited higher levels of perceived stigma. Social networks moderated the associations between cognitive scores and perceived stigma. This research suggested that the quality of one's social networks is essential to reduce perceived stigma among Chinese older adults. Future research should continue to explore ADRD stigma among Chinese older adults to help guide relevant interventions, services and supports for this population.
ISSN:0144-686X
1469-1779
DOI:10.1017/S0144686X20001294