ABSTRACT
Sooner or later, most elderly demented patients think that their deceased parents are still alive. In the study reported here, this is called ‘parent-fixation’ (PF). This phenomenon can be considered within several theoretical frameworks, but Bowlby's attachment theory is the most useful. A standard visiting procedure (SVP) was developed so that attachment behaviour of demented elderly persons towards their family could be videotaped and studied in detail.
The research results show that feeling unsafe and insecure is a common feature of the dementing process. The way in which these feelings manifest themselves depends mostly on the stage of dementia. Concrete attachment behaviour is strongest in early stages of dementia and is gradually replaced by PF as the disease progresses. PF is illustrated by a number of case examples and can be readily understood as a form of attachment behaviour.
