Art Galleries, Episodic Memory and Verbal Fluency in Dementia: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

Aesthetic responses associated with viewing visual art have recently been shown to have positive effects for people with dementia. The current exploratory study investigated how structured viewing of paintings in a public art gallery, followed by an art-making visual response, might affect cognition. Through a novel use of audio recordings and content analysis, utilizing a mixed-methods pre-post design with 4-week follow-up, the study sought to explore if art viewing and art making, in an art gallery setting, had an impact on episodic memory and verbal fluency. The findings suggested that episodic memory could be enhanced through aesthetic responses to visual art, although effects on verbal fluency were more ambiguous. Family caregivers (FC), who were also part of the study, substantiated these findings but also reported that their family member with dementia showed improved mood, confidence, and reduced isolation during the art gallery sessions. The results support the need for additional research to further investigate the potential positive impact of visual art and aesthetic stimulation on people with a dementia.

Full text

Art Galleries, Episodic Memory and Verbal Fluency in Dementia:
An Exploratory Study
Catherine Eekelaar and Paul M. Camic
Canterbury Christ Church University Neil Springham
Oxleas National Health Service Foundation Trust, London,
United Kingdom
Aesthetic responses associated with viewing visual art have recently been shown to have positive effects
for people with dementia. The current exploratory study investigated how structured viewing of paintings
in a public art gallery, followed by an art-making visual response, might affect cognition. Through a
novel use of audio recordings and content analysis, utilizing a mixed-methods pre-post design with
4-week follow-up, the study sought to explore if art viewing and art making, in an art gallery setting, had
an impact on episodic memory and verbal fluency. The findings suggested that episodic memory could
be enhanced through aesthetic responses to visual art, although effects on verbal fluency were more
ambiguous. Family caregivers (FC), who were also part of the study, substantiated these findings but also
reported that their family member with dementia showed improved mood, confidence, and reduced
isolation during the art gallery sessions. The results support the need for additional research to further
investigate the potential positive impact of visual art and aesthetic stimulation on people with a dementia.
Keywords: aesthetics, content analysis, dementia, verbal fluency, episodic memory
Supplemental materials: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0027499.supp
The term dementia describes a variety of diseases characterized
by cognitive difficulties (e.g., memory problems and difficulties
with language, visuospatial function, and executive function) as
well as an overall decline in daily living skills (Knapp & Prince,
2007). In addition to cognitive decline, people with a dementia
(PWD) can also experience changes in behavior (e.g., Fairburn &
Hope, 1988; Burns, Jacoby, & Levy, 1990), and mood (e.g., Teri
& Wagner, 1992; Boland, 2000; Ownby, Crocco, Acevedo, John,
& Loewenstein, 2006).
There are an estimated 35 million people with dementia worldwide
(Alzheimer’s Disease International, 2010) and as the ageing popula-
tion increases, this is expected to rise substantially. Until there is a
cure for dementia there will be a growing need to address the social
and psychological issues confronting this population and those who
help care for them. The visual arts may be one way to address these
issues through “arts-based activities that aim to improve individual
and community health and health care delivery, and which enhance
the health care environment” (Arts Council England, 2007, p. 5).
Although research in this area is only recently emerging, there
is some indication that arts-based activities in the community can
provide positive clinical outcomes (both physically and psycho-
logically), improve mental wellbeing, and enhance a sense of
social inclusion and empowerment (Staricoff, 2004; Clift et al.,
2009). Fisher and Specht (1999) discovered that older people who
contributed to a senior art exhibition found creative activity fos-
tered a sense of purpose, competence, and motivation, which
helped to facilitate successful ageing. Other examples of arts
activities with beneficial effects on well-being and stress reduction
include dance (Cook & Ledger, 2004), creative writing (Jensen &
Blair, 1997) and group singing (Von Lob, Camic, & Clift, 2010).
Shaer et al. (2008) developed nonclinical art-viewing and art-
making groups at the Tate Britain Gallery in London for people with
mental health problems and their carers. Beneficial outcomes included
a sense of social inclusion, a shared experience through collective art
activities, and improved communication as the gallery space offered a
unique forum for communicating difficult thoughts and feelings. The
therapeutic value of the art gallery setting for family carers was also
found in a recent study that involved people who were caring for a
relative with a severe and longstanding mental health problem (Rob-
erts, Camic, & Springham, 2011).
Research into art-viewing and art-making activities for PWD is
sparse. Although only employing small samples, there is evidence
emerging that suggests PWD who engage in an arts-based activities
show improvements in social and psychological wellbeing (Rentz,
2002; Kinney & Rentz, 2005; Roush et al., 2010), increased confi-
dence, enthusiasm, enjoyment, and social contact (MacPherson, Bird,
Anderson, Davis, & Blair, 2009; Camic, Williams, & Meeten, 2011),
and decreased ratings of depression (Musella et al., 2009).
Rosenberg (2009) reported on a study at New York’s Museum
of Modern Art, in which people in the early stages of Alzheimer’s
This article was published Online First March 5, 2012.
Catherine Eekelaar and Paul M. Camic, Department of Applied Psy-
chology, Canterbury Christ Church University, Tunbridge Wells, Kent,
United Kingdom; Neil Springham, Department of Art Therapy, Oxleas
National Health Service Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom.
We thank the staff of the Dulwich Picture Gallery, London for their
generous support and assistance in hosting this research and for their active
participation as research partners. In particular, we want to acknowledge the
help of Gillian Wolf, Clare Ferdinando, Michelle Douek, and Sarah Ciacci
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Paul M.
Camic, Department of Applied Psychology, Canterbury Christ Church
University, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN3 0TG, United Kingdom. E-mail:
paul.camic@canterbury.ac.uk
Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts © 2012 American Psychological Association
2012, Vol. 6, No. 3, 262–272 1931-3896/12/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/a0027499
262
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