Increasing Social Activity Attendance in Assisted Living Residents Using Personalized Prompts and Positive Social Attention

Abstract

Low levels of social activity involvement may have negative implications on overall quality of life for older adults living in residential care settings. Despite the recent growth of assisted living (AL) facilities, few studies have examined social activity participation in this environment. The present study assessed the effects of two prompt procedures that included different amounts of positive social attention (personalized prompts alone and combined with brief conversation) on the social activity attendance of 8 AL residents. Personalized prompts were designed to appeal to each participant on the basis of preference assessments regarding activity interests and preferred types of activity participation. During treatment conditions, increases in attendance occurred not only following treatment prompts but also during activities that were not preceded by treatment prompts. Similar effects were observed for both treatment prompts. Results suggest that personalized prompts and positive social attention can increase weekly social activity attendance in AL residents.