A Theatrical Intervention to Improve Cognition in Intact Residents of Long Term Care Facilities

This study explored a theatrically-based intervention for old-olds (average age: 82.3) living in a continuing care facility. Approximately half of the participants used hearing aids and/or walkers, canes or wheelchairs, and most had self-reported memory concerns although they did not suffer from serious mental impairment as assessed by the SPMSQ. A distinguishing feature of the intervention was that no element of the theatre instruction was targeted to the test instruments. Instead, participants were trained to create life-like characters who could spontaneously interact with others. The design consisted of a one group pretest-posttest with double pretest. After four weeks of twice-weekly instructional sessions, the researchers found significant improvement in recall and problem-solving ability. Reasons for the efficacy of theatrical training with this population are discussed. Also, evidence is presented for the self-reinforcing nature of the program.