Based on the findings of several in-depth research studies and on the author's long experience of working with people with dementia, this groundbreaking book provides fresh perspectives on the condition. Showing how evidence is lacking to support the model of dementia as a disease, the book explores the possibilities of psychological intervention for remediable or enduring cognitive losses.

Michael Bender is a consultant clinical psychologist and Head of Psychological Services to Older Adults in Plymouth Primary Care Trust. He lectures and publishes extensively on the psychology of old age and dementia, and is co-author of Understanding Dementia: The Man with the Worried Eyes, also available from Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Introduction. Part I: The Scientific Status of the Standard Paradigm and its Implications. 1. The Scientific Status of the Standard Paradigm. 2. How is the Standard Paradigm Maintained? 3. The Effects of the Paradigm: The Rise of Memory Clinics. Part II: A Framework for Understanding the Individual. 4. How Can we Understand the Person Who is Experiencing Cognitive Loss(es)? Part III: Perspectives of Understanding. 5. Old in Britain Today. 6. Psychosocial Explanations of Disorientation. 7. Difficulties and Problems, with Sally Robbins. 8. Cycles of Negotiation. 9. The Context of Assessment: Before the Professionals. 10. The Client's Position. 11. Insight, `Inconsistency' and Selves. 12. Interpersonal and Intrapsychic Survival, with Sally Robbins. Part IV: Futures. 13. In Practice. 14. Ways Forward. 15. Entrances and Exits. Appendices. References. Index.