Year

2023

Season

Spring

Paper Type

Master's Thesis

College

College of Arts and Sciences

Degree Name

Master of Science in Psychological Science (MSPS)

Department

Psychology

NACO controlled Corporate Body

University of North Florida. Department of Psychology

First Advisor

Dr. Curtis Phills

Second Advisor

Dr. Jody Nicholson

Abstract

Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) are becoming more common among older adults around the United States, including African Americans, who are twice as likely to be clinically diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. Though it is counter-intuitive, young adults are important when examining the future projections of ADRD because they will be the future caretakers of older adults. The current study investigated whether impressions of people with dementia are influenced by the interaction of gender and race among young adults. In Phase 1, young adults (N = 157, ages 18-25, median age = 20) completed a reverse correlation task where they were randomly assigned to select over many trials one face among 12 presented that most looked like either a person, a man, a woman, a black man, or a black woman diagnosed with dementia. Their choices were used to generate classification images of people diagnosed with dementia. Consistent with the intersectional invisibility hypothesis, men were the default when imagining people diagnosed with dementia. In Phase 2, MTurk participants (N = 108, ages 23-64, median age = 35) rated classification images of people with dementia generated by Phase 1 participants. Inconsistent with the multiple jeopardy hypothesis, attitudes toward dementia were not more negative for Black men, Black women, or women compared to people with dementia. In fact, Black women were rated more competent than Black men and race not specified women and men. The current research highlights the need for intersectional approaches to understanding attitudes and stereotypes related to dementia.

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