Care Aesthetics and Dementia Studies

Building on several pioneering projects and aspects of lived experience, Care Aesthetics and Dementia Studies: New Directions for Person-Centred Practices presents a new vision for dementia studies where care aesthetics is situated as the language for the doing of person-centred care and the processes of everyday evaluation.

Presented over four interconnected Parts, the book shares a collection of studies and conceptual thinking that spotlights the sensory, embodied, and relational aspects of person-centred practices, and focusses on both the macro- and micro-processes of care, elevating such interactions into a seen and visible craft. It contains contributions from a range of interdisciplinary authors, including those with backgrounds in philosophy, psychiatry, theatre and performance studies, neuroscience, improvisation studies, sociology, gerontology, design, health and social care, and the Royal Horticultural Society. People living with dementia and family carers are also represented within the chapter authorship.

The book should be of interest to a range of readers, from those living with dementia through to practitioners in any setting of dementia care, and to students and trainees who are interested in knowing more about the evolving field of aesthetic practices in dementia studies.