Impact of digital storytelling experience among people living with dementia

Purpose Digital Storytelling is a form of active reminiscing that compiles personal information told by an individual into a chronicle of their life and presents it on a digital platform1-2. This form of active reminiscing allows for self-expression, positive communication, and social connection3. This could benefit people with dementia by providing them with the tools and opportunity to shape the story they want to share while they are able to do so. This study focuses on exploring the experience of participatory digital storytelling for adults with different stages of dementia, through direct participant involvement in production of the narrative and digital story. Method Participants with dementia are being recruited from day programs, then interview sessions are conducted to co-create their story script. Family photos, images and music are collected together with the participants as starting materials to make their digital story on the online video editing platform We Video4. Video drafts are created along with the participant to determine the fit of music and flow of the story. The final step of the process is to showcase the digital stories with friends and family of the participant. Results & Discussion The research is still at the data collection stage where participants are being interviewed to develop the scripts for the final video product. Preliminary results will be provided once the current research is completed. The current study is providing further insights into the storytelling experience of people living with dementia to evaluate the impact of active reminiscing. This is important for enabling them to tell their own story. The prospective long-term impact of this project is to create a process for people living with dementia to co-create digital stories for their potential benefits to both participants and their caregivers.