Correlation of wandering and Wayfinding in Korean Elders with Dementia at Home

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship of wandering and wayfinding, especially what particular wayfinding decrements are linked to specific dimensions of wandering in a community dwelling persons with dementia in Korea. A total of 83 non-institutionalized, community dwelling elders with dementia and their family caregivers were participated. Data were collected using interview with family caregivers. Wandering was measured using Revised Algase Wandering Scale-Community Version (K-RAWS-CV) along with its six dimensions: persistent walking, repetitive walking, spatial disorientation, eloping behavior, negative outcomes, and mealtime impulsivity. Wayfinding was measured using the Wayfinding Effectiveness Scale-Korean Version (K-WES) with four subscales (complex wayfinding goals, analytic strategies, global strategies, and simple wayfinding goals). Cognitive test was measured using Mini Mental State Examination (K-MMSE). Correlational analysis was used to determine the relationship between K-RAWS-CV subscale scores and the K-WES subscale scores. Overall, the K-RAWS-CV and the K-WES correlated at -0.67 (p<.01), indicating significant negative relationship between wayfinding effectiveness and wandering. At the level of subscales, the all K-RAWS-CV subscales were significantly correlated with all WES subscales except analytic strategy (r=-0.65 to -0.22). The Spatial disorientation subscale had the highest correlation of any K-RAWS-CV subscale with the overall K-WES (r= -0.66). The all K-RASW-CV subscales except negative outcome and the all K-WES subscales were significantly correlated with K-MMSE scores. These findings support the assertion that particular wayfinding deficits are a potential explanation for specific dimensions of wandering and cognitive decrements are related to wandering and wayfinding deficits.