Relationship between familiar environment and wandering behaviour among Korean elders with dementia

Aim. To explore the relationship between wandering behaviour and familiar environment in community‐residing persons with dementia in Korea. Background. Numerous non‐pharmacological interventions have been developed to decrease behavioural symptoms and to increase the quality of life among persons with dementia. Although the concept of familiarity is very important and environmental interventions using the concept should have been developed for persons with dementia, no study examining even the direct relationship between familiar environment and wandering has yet been published. Design. A descriptive, cross‐sectional survey design. Methods. A convenience sample was gathered of 77 non‐institutionalised, community‐dwelling persons with dementia and their family caregivers in Seoul and Wonju, South Korea. Descriptive statics, Pearson’s correlations, t‐tests, and multiple regressions were used in the data analysis. Results. The mean age of persons with dementia was 76·9 years (SD 8·0) and their mean cognitive level score using the Mini‐Mental State Examination was 13·51 (SD 6·10). Most persons with dementia (71·4%) had been diagnosed with known types of dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease, multiple infarct dementia, mixed type or Parkinson’s disease with dementia. A familiar feeling with the environment was associated with cognitive impairment (r = 0·32, p