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Article published In:
Pragmatics of Active Social Inclusion
Edited by Yoshiko Matsumoto and Heidi E. Hamilton
[Pragmatics and Society 15:1] 2024
► pp. 17–32
Section 1: Exploring inclusivity from talk-based interactions with and about persons living with dementia

Determiners of social inclusion and exclusion in the dementia context

The perspective of family carers

ORCID logo | Cardiff University
 | Cardiff University
People living with a dementia and their family carers are at high risk of being excluded from the contact, activities, information and services that help them remain resilient. Using interview data from family dementia carers, this article explores the sources of enablement and inhibition in accessing these aspects of social inclusion. Carers and those living with a dementia are found to inhibit and enable social inclusion for themselves, each other, and other carers. However, carers attribute most agency to the external environment: what is provided and how easy it is to access, along with the attitudes and beliefs of others. Poor communication surfaces as an impediment to social inclusion, with carers often left trying to bridge communicative gaps despite limited knowledge and self-confidence.
Keywords: dementia, family caregivers, social inclusion, communication, social reserve, emotional reserve
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Social inclusion/exclusion and dementia care
    • 2.1Communication as a factor in social inclusion/exclusion
    • 2.2A reference model of social inclusion and communication
    • 2.3Research questions
  • 3.What family dementia carers say about social inclusion and communication
    • 3.1Method and data
    • 3.2Mechanisms of social exclusion
    • 3.3Mechanisms of social inclusion
  • 4.Conclusion: Social inclusion and the opportunity for communication
  • References
Published online: 21 December 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/ps.23051.wra
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