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Effects of reminiscing about nostalgic smells on the physiological and psychological responses of older people in long-term care facilities

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 September 2018

Sin Rou Fu ,
Mei Fen Lee  and
Sheng Jung Ou
Sin Rou Fu
Affiliation:
Program of Landscape and Recreation, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
Mei Fen Lee
Affiliation:
Department of Landscape Architecture, National Chin-Yi University of Technology, Taichung, Taiwan
Sheng Jung Ou*
Affiliation:
Department of Landscape and Urban Design, Chaoyang University of Technology, Taichung, Taiwan
*
*Corresponding author. Email: sjou@cyut.edu.tw
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Abstract

This study adopted mixed-methods research to explore the effects of reminiscing about nostalgic smells on the physiological and psychological responses of older people in long-term care facilities. A total of 60 participants were randomly divided into two groups and each participant was either interviewed regarding their reminiscence about nostalgic smells (experimental group) or were engaged in daily conversation (control group). The results indicated that anxiety and depression symptoms were more effectively relieved in the experimental group than in the control group. Moreover, most of the nostalgic smells recalled by the experimental group were associated with naturally occurring smells. Regarding heart rate variability, the normalised low-frequency of the experimental group decreased significantly. The results verified the utility of using reminiscence about olfactory memories in reminiscence therapy as this can calm anxiety and lessen depression, which can be very important for older adults living in long-term care facilities.

Keywords

reminiscencenostalgiaolfactory memoryphysiological and psychological healthlong-term care facilities
Type
Article
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 40 , Issue 3 , March 2020 , pp. 501 - 511
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018

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