Millerman's Theory Of Dementia

Dementia is an acquired condition characterized by a progressive global decline in all aspects of cognition (Miller & Morris, 1993). Dementia is not a disease itself, but rather a disorder caused by various diseases and conditions, the most common being Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)(Miller & Morris, 1993). Spouses predominantly assume the role of caregiver for their significant other with dementia (SOWD) (Braun et al., 2009; Dunkin & Anderson-Hanley, 1998).The experience of spousal caregivers (SC) of SOWD differs from the experience of other caregiver groups due the unique composition of the marital partnership (Wright, 1991; Baikie, 2002). An area of particular significance to SC and their SOWD, is the impact that dementia has on intimacy. Interpersonal intimacy can be simplistically defined as an emotional and physical connection to another human being (Timmerman, 1998; Harris, Adams, Zubatsky & White, 2011).

Loss of intimacy within the marital relationship negatively impacts the psychoemotional health of couples, and is a major cause of emotional distress (Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Davies et al., 2015). While dementia commonly causes a deterioration of intimacy in the marital relationship, it is possible that intimacy can be retained, and even strengthened, in face of dementia (Harris et al., 2011). Further research investigating how dementia affects intimacy and ways that couples successfully retain intimacy has important implications for supporting struggling couples (Kuppuswamy et al.,