Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 9, 2026

Assessment and Communication for People with Disorders of Consciousness
Published on: August 1, 2017
Narrating dementia: self and community in an online forum
1University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO 65211, USA. rodriquezj@missouri.edu
Abstract:
In this article, I examine how individuals diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease use illness narratives to construct community. The ability to narrate is a fundamental component of the self. Using 354 posts by 32 members of an Internet forum, I argue that people with Alzheimer's, whose ability to narrate, and thus create a self, was compromised, nonetheless managed to tell stories of redemption out of which a salvaged self emerged. Narratives are essential for the construction of self, but as I show in this article, they are also essential for the construction of community. Forum members shared stories, gave advice, offered encouragement, and commiserated about their symptoms in ways that generated solidarity. Internet forums provide a venue for people with illnesses who are unable to leave the home to construct community.
More Related Videos
08:53Integrating Computerized Linguistic and Social Network Analyses to Capture Addiction Recovery Capital in an Online Community
Published on: May 31, 2019
08:36The Immersive Cleveland Clinic Virtual Reality Shopping Platform for the Assessment of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living
Published on: July 28, 2022
Related Concept Videos
Dementia l: Introduction
Social Foundations of Self IV: Self in Digital Communication
Dementia
The progression of dementia is generally gradual.
Nursing Process for Patient and Caregiver Teaching I: Assessment and Diagnosis
It is critical to determine the patient's learning needs during the assessment. Determination of learning needs compounds data from the...
Alzheimer Disease l: Introduction
Autobiographical Memory