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Intergenerational volunteering and quality of life: mixed methods evaluation of a randomized control trial involving persons with mild to moderate dementia

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Abstract

Purpose

This article reports on a mixed methods evaluation of a randomized control trial in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, that assessed whether an intergenerational volunteering intervention could enhance quality of life (QOL) for persons with mild to moderate dementia.

Methods

Fifteen participants were randomized into intervention and control groups. The intervention group participated in hour-long volunteer sessions with a kindergarten class and an older elementary class in alternating weeks over a 5-month interval. Psychometric data on cognitive functioning, stress, depression, sense of purpose, and sense of usefulness were collected at baseline and at the close of the intervention, and change scores were computed and analyzed for all variables. Ethnography was carried out through the duration of the study, and narrative interviews were held with participants and caregivers. A modified grounded theory approach was used for qualitative analysis.

Results

Quantitative analysis demonstrated a significant decrease in stress for the intervention group. Qualitative analysis identified three main pathways through which intergenerational volunteering affected QOL: perceived health benefits, sense of purpose and sense of usefulness, and relationships.

Conclusions

Mixed methods evaluation demonstrated that intergenerational volunteering might enhance quality of life through several key pathways, most significantly reduced stress.

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Abbreviations

JP:

Judson Park

QOL:

Quality of life

RCT:

Randomized control trial

TIS:

The Intergenerational School

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Acknowledgments

This research was undertaken as part of the author’s doctoral research in the Institute for Social and Cultural Anthropology at Oxford University, which was supported by the Overseas Research Student fund. Additional funding for fieldwork was provided by the Shigeo & Megumi Takayama Foundation and the Greenwall Foundation through The Intergenerational School, and funding for the writing up of results was provided through a grant from the Fondation Médéric Alzheimer and Alzheimer’s Disease International. A special acknowledgment to Peter Whitehouse and Cathy Whitehouse, co-founders of TIS, as well as Stanley Ulijaszek and Harvey Whitehouse of Oxford University, Lin Bartel of the Judson Park Retirement Community, and Darryl Wilkinson of Columbia University, all of whom provided ongoing support.

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  1. Department of Humanities, Penn State College of Medicine, 500 University Drive, Hershey, PA, 17033, USA

    Daniel R. George

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  1. Daniel R. George
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Correspondence to Daniel R. George.

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George, D.R. Intergenerational volunteering and quality of life: mixed methods evaluation of a randomized control trial involving persons with mild to moderate dementia. Qual Life Res 20, 987–995 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-010-9837-8

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