4. Discussion
Obviously, many things could change in the coming years. A single reliable test or a new, effective form of treatment could be found, or certain lifestyle changes could be scientifically recognized as being effective. But in the absence of such developments, one would expect certain changes of attitude and belief to occur as more people have experience with a family member who has Alzheimer’s disease. The results suggest that, in general, the public will become more concerned about Alzheimer’s disease and more likely to recognize that Alzheimer is a fatal disease, although most beliefs about the disease are unlikely to change.
One of the rationales for this study is that the publics in individual countries, with differing cultures and health systems, are likely to respond in different ways as more families have experience with Alzheimer’s disease. What do the survey findings mean for the future in each of the five countries?
For France, we would expect that as the number of people who have experience with a family member who has Alzheimer’s disease grows, changes in public attitudes and beliefs would change in three areas. A larger proportion of the French public would believe that Alzheimer is a fatal disease. In addition, more would perceive anger and violence and confusion and disorientation to be common symptoms of the disease.
For Germany, as the proportion of those who have family experience with Alzheimer’s disease grows, we would expect changes in three areas. A larger proportion of the German public would choose Alzheimer as the disease they are most afraid of getting. In addition, more would perceive that difficulty managing daily tasks is to be a common symptom of the disease. A larger proportion would also favor increase of government spending on new treatments for the disease.
Poland starts out as the country with the smallest proportion of the population reporting family experience with Alzheimer’s disease among the five countries in the survey. As that proportion grows in the future, we would expect changes in public attitudes and beliefs in nine areas. A larger proportion of the Polish public would choose Alzheimer as the disease they are most afraid of getting, believe that Alzheimer is a fatal disease, and perceive the following to be common symptoms of the disease: confusion and disorientation, difficulty managing daily tasks, anger and violence, and wandering and getting lost. If the pattern persists, one would also expect a smaller proportion to perceive difficulty remembering things from their life from years before to be a common symptom. In addition, a larger proportion would be expected to favor increased government spending on research on new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and on caring for people who have the disease.