APPLYING RESEARCH ON CULTURAL NARRATIVES ABOUT LIVING WITH DEMENTIA TO SOCIAL POLICY AND PRACTICE - SESSION 2420 (SYMPOSIUM)

Sep 29, 2026

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This symposium presents a 2025 report on cultural narratives about dementia, supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Cultural narratives are stories conveyed through metaphors and representations that circulate across social groups to generate meaning from shared observations. By shaping common knowledge, these narratives affect social policy and practical responses to societal needs. Papers examine how recognizing cultural narratives and using narrative repair can support people living with dementia, including research on policy improvement, community-based participatory findings, and dementia-friendly initiatives for congregations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages2

Reading Time5 min

AccessFree to download

Symposium Overview

Cultural Narratives and Their Impact on Policy and Practice

Featured Papers and Key Themes

Dementia Care Narratives and Policy Recommendations

Indigenous Community Narratives and Respectful Strategies

Narrative Repair for Older Black Women

Brain Health Narratives for Black Men

Dementia-Friendly Initiatives for Congregations

288 Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 SESSION 2420 (SYMPOSIUM) Abstract citation ID: igaf122.969 APPLYING RESEARCH ON CULTURAL NARRATIVES ABOUT LIVING WITH DEMENTIA TO SOCIAL POLICY AND PRACTICE Chair: Nancy Berlinger Discussant: Nancy Berlinger This symposium presents a 2025 report on cultural narratives about dementia, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Cultural narratives are stories expressed through metaphors and other representations that circulate through social groups to make meaning out of observations. By shaping common knowledge, cultural narratives influence social policy and practice concerning responses to societal needs. Papers will show how recognition of cultural narratives, practices of narrative repair, and the generation of new narratives are integral to supporting people with dementia in a society and communities. The first paper analyzes selected cultural narratives, showing how they convey ideas about improving dementia care. It presents recommendations for improving policy development. The second paper draws on findings from community-based participatory research (CBPR) with North American Indigenous communities that reveal community-level narratives about aging and Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 289 dementia. It explains strategies that respect these narratives. The third paper considers the experiences of older Black women in the context of elevated risk of dementia, precursor conditions, later-life economic precarity, and caregiving. It suggests narrative repair strategies to better represent and support these experiences. The fourth paper explores the concept of brain health as it applies to Black men, a group at elevated risk of dementia and precursor conditions. It draws on findings from CBPR and community health initiatives to consider new narratives about brain health that include Black men. The fifth paper offers insights from research and practice on an innovative dementia-friendly initiative for congregations. It explains how dementia-friendliness narratives can evolve from awareness to inclusion.

FAQs

What is the purpose of the symposium and who funded the report?

The symposium presents a 2025 report on cultural narratives about dementia, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

How do cultural narratives influence social policy and practice?

By shaping common knowledge, cultural narratives influence how societies respond through social policy and practical approaches to meet collective needs.

What kinds of research themes do the five papers cover?

The papers cover dementia care narratives and policy recommendations, community-level narratives from Indigenous CBPR, narrative repair for older Black women, brain health narratives for Black men, and insights on dementia-friendly initiatives for congregations.

Sep 29, 2026

Upload by Logic