Search

Globally as the population ages, the prevalence of dementia will increase. Simultaneously, there is a trend toward people ageing at home. Therefore, more people will be ageing at home with dementia, as opposed to institutional environments. In this context, there has been a recent shift in research exploring ways that people can live well with the consequences of the disease. As a part of this emerging research, the social and spatial aspects of the lives of people living with memory problems are becoming increasingly of interest. The aim of this article is to use the concept of activity space to examine the social health of older adults with memory problems and dementia who live at home. Activity space data were collected from seven older adults experiencing memory problems and living at home in the Netherlands. Using a mixed-methods approach, insight into their activity spaces were gained through walking interviews, 14 days of global positioning system (GPS) movement data, travel diary entries and in-depth interviews. The GPS data, travel diary data and interview transcripts were analyzed using a grounded visualization approach. Our findings show that participants interact independently in routine activity spaces but depend on others to participate in occasional activity spaces. Interactions within both these spaces contribute to the social health of older adults with memory problems and dementia who live at home. Additionally, participants used coping strategies and decision-making to maintain autonomy in daily life. The findings can inform dementia-friendly initiatives and social health care planning.

The aim of this methods-focused article is to explore the potential benefits of integrating GPS, diary and in-depth interview data to gain richer insights into the everyday mobility practices of older adults. Eighteen adults, aged 65-90 years, living in the Netherlands, participated in the study. Our findings illustrate how quantitative (GPS) and qualitative (interviews and diary-based) approaches together can generate different insights and layers of understanding from each individual method in order to enhance the overall study findings. Our findings demonstrate that our methodological approach generates new insights with respect to GPS-measured and self-reported mobility, time-geographies, and micro-geographies of older adults in the Netherlands. In conclusion, our mixed-methods approach contributes to a better understanding of the everyday mobility practices of older adults, and could be used in other demographic groups.