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Public knowledge about dementia in Germany—results of a population survey

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Journal of Public Health

Abstract

Objectives

The following research questions are addressed: (1) What does the German public know about dementia? (2) Are social factors, care experience and contact with dementia patients associated with knowledge about dementia? (3) Is knowledge associated with attitudes/beliefs about dementia?

Methods

Analyses are based on a German mail survey conducted in 2012. Sample consists of persons aged 18–79 years. 1795 persons filled out the questionnaire (response rate 78 %). Respondents were asked about their knowledge of and attitudes about dementia.

Results

Knowledge about cause, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and life impact of dementia is characterized by a relatively high uncertainty. People with care experiences and people from higher status groups know more about dementia. People with more knowledge are less likely to believe that dementia patients have a high quality of life, but tend to be less skeptical about early detection of dementia.

Conclusions

To increase knowledge, reduce uncertainty and modify attitudes towards dementia and those who are afflicted, educational programs and contact-based approaches should be considered.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Bertelsmann Stiftung for the opportunity to integrate questions on dementia literacy in “Gesundheitsmonitor 2013” and for providing the dataset for the present analyses.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Sociology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistr. 52, 20246, Hamburg, Germany

    Daniel Lüdecke, Olaf von dem Knesebeck & Christopher Kofahl

Authors
  1. Daniel Lüdecke
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  2. Olaf von dem Knesebeck
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  3. Christopher Kofahl
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Correspondence to Daniel Lüdecke.

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Lüdecke, D., von dem Knesebeck, O. & Kofahl, C. Public knowledge about dementia in Germany—results of a population survey. Int J Public Health 61, 9–16 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0703-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-015-0703-x

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