Case Study

I Will Tell You Something of My Own

Impact summary

"I Will Tell You Something of My Own" was a performative social science project that aimed to illuminate the experience of dementia and to help combat stigma around this condition. There were two aspects to the project: a piece of qualitative research and a multi-arts exhibition. Art works in the exhibition were co-created and/or inspired by people living with dementia. The project demonstrates the ability of performative social science to bring social scientific research to larger/broader audiences, to touch audiences on both emotional and cognitive levels, and to make a meaningful difference to the lives of participants and others in their community.

Scientific summary

The qualitative research component of this project used semi-structured interviews with six participants who had moderate dementia.  These data were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The aim was to illuminate what it is like to live with dementia from the perspectives of people who have this condition. Five themes were elicited: awareness and understanding of dementia; clarity and confusion; social support and relationships; living with dementia; and life lived. Together, these themes narrate the lived experiences of people with dementia, demonstrating their awareness both of the difficulties presented by dementia and the negative perceptions of others around this condition.  These findings are discussed in a research paper (currently under submission).

Evidence of impact

The first run of the exhibition attracted a total of 894 visits, and an estimated total reach of approximately 9,510 people (including exhibition visitors, audience at outreach talks, listeners to radio broadcasts, visitors to internet platforms and other project offshoots). This audience is expected to grow as the project continues to be promoted online, through conference presentations and through articles such as Gregory (2014a) in Forum: Qualitative Social Research and Gregory (2014b) in The Psychologist magazine. Many visitors reported that their views had been challenged by their experience of the exhibition and that they had a fuller understanding of personhood in dementia. Others arrived already valuing a person-centered approach to dementia. For this latter group, the display served a different function, reinforcing their convictions and, in some cases, providing them with a medium through which they could communicate these to others.

Gregory (2014a) expands on this analysis with reference to Jones’ (2007) six core criteria for evaluating performative social science work.  Gregory’s article explores the extent to which the project met Jones’ criteria with reference to data from feedback questionnaires, footfall figures, guestbook comments, emails and participants’ reflections.  Thematic analysis of these data demonstrate the utility of “I Will Tell You Something of My Own” in bringing social scientific research to larger/broader audiences, touching audiences on both emotional and cognitive levels, and making a meaningful difference to the lives of participants and others in their community.

Details of funding

Grants received from Gloucestershire NHS and Arts Council England