PROFILES OF BELIEFS ABOUT ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE RISK FACTORS AND PREVENTION STRATEGIES AMONG AMERICANS AGED 50+

Sep 29, 2026

The study examines how Americans aged 50+ perceive Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk factors and prevention strategies, aiming to link belief patterns to motivation for healthy behaviors that may reduce dementia risk. Data from 1,819 adults in a 2010 Health and Retirement Study experimental module were analyzed using latent profile analysis and multinomial regression. Participants rated the importance of risk factors and the effectiveness of prevention strategies on a 3-point Likert scale. Three belief profiles emerged: uncertainty, strong endorsement of prevention strategies, and a genetics-focused but prevention-skeptical pattern, with demographic factors including education and race predicting membership. Public health messaging should be tailored accordingly.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Study objective and dataset

Measures and analytical approach

Belief profiles and demographic predictors

Public health implications

744 Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 Abstract citation ID: igaf122.2530 PROFILES OF BELIEFS ABOUT ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE RISK FACTORS AND PREVENTION STRATEGIES AMONG AMERICANS AGED 50+ Elyse Couch1, Fangli Geng1, Eric Jutkowitz2, and Emmanuelle Belanger1, 1. Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, United States, 2. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States Increasing knowledge about the causes of dementia is essential for motivating engagement in healthy behaviors that can lower one’s risk of dementia. This study aimed to identify distinct patterns of beliefs regarding the importance of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk factors and the effectiveness of prevention strategies among Americans aged 50+ . We analyzed data from 1,819 adults who participated in a 2010 Health and Retirement Study experimental module on AD knowledge and beliefs. On a 3-point Likert scale, participants rated the importance of AD risk factors (stress and genetics) for causing AD (1 = not important; 3 = very important) and the effectiveness of prevention strategies (physical activity, mental activity, diet, vitamins)(1 = not effective; 3 = very effective). We performed an unweighted latent profile analysis to identify three distinct profiles of beliefs about AD risk factors and prevention strategies and multinomial regression to identify demographic predictors of profile membership. Profile 1 (63% of participants) were uncertain about the importance of risk factors and the effectiveness of prevention strategies; Profile 2 (15% of participants) strongly believed in the effectiveness of all prevention strategies, and Profile 3 (21% of participants) rated genetics as the most important risk factor but did not believe in the effectiveness of prevention strategies. Demographic characteristics, such as education and race, were associated with profile membership. Public health messaging about AD prevention should be tailored to the beliefs of different demographic groups.

FAQs

What was the study’s main objective regarding Alzheimer’s disease beliefs?

To identify distinct patterns of beliefs about the importance of AD risk factors and the effectiveness of prevention strategies among Americans aged 50+.

How were participants’ beliefs measured in the study?

Participants rated the importance of AD risk factors (stress and genetics) and the effectiveness of prevention strategies (physical activity, mental activity, diet, vitamins) on a 3-point Likert scale.

What were the key belief profiles found, and who predicted membership?

Three profiles emerged: uncertainty, strong belief in all prevention strategies, and strong belief in genetics but skepticism about prevention effectiveness. Education and race were associated with profile membership.

Sep 29, 2026

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