Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 6, 2026

Brain Imaging Investigation of the Impairing Effect of Emotion on Cognition
Published on: February 1, 2012
Fear, Defensive Strategies and Caring for Cognitively Impaired Family Members
Dale Spencer1, Laura M Funk2, Rachel V Herron3
1a Department of Law and Legal Studies , Carleton University , Ottawa , Ontario , Canada.
Abstract:
One topic rarely addressed in the literature on older adults and interpersonal violence is the violence that can be experienced by family carers in relationship with a person living with cognitive impairment. This violence tends to remain hidden and is rarely framed as intimate partner violence. We examine how situations of intimidation and violence invoked fear in family carers and how they interpreted and reacted to these circum- stances. Interview and diary data were collected from family members who had previously or were currently experiencing some form of aggression in caring for someone with cognitive impairment or dementia. Drawing on discussions of fear and applying the analytic lens of defensive strategies, we explore how these carers responded to situations of intimidation and violence.
Related Concept Videos
Protein Families
Protein Families
Gene Families
Occasionally these regions can be adapted to take on new roles within the organism, becoming novel genes...
Gene Families
Cognitive Dissonance
Family Therapy
Strategic Family Therapy
Strategic family therapy emphasizes resolving communication barriers and improving problem-solving abilities...

