Pathways to knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes about Alzheimer's disease and community services among Korean immigrants

It is important to ensure that the general public has an adequate understanding of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and to expand their knowledge level because knowledge gaps and misconceptions about AD could carry serious consequences (e.g., delayed recognition and diagnosis, failure to seek appropriate, timely treatment and/or outside assistance, and ultimately greater burden on family and society). Investigating the general public's knowledge level and attitudes about available community services is also crucial in that these people could become future customers of supportive services and their current attitudes can provide useful information in projecting future demands. The way AD and community services is perceived and understood could vary by different ethnic groups with varied cultural backgrounds. However, little evidence about those differences and similarities is available.;The purpose of the study was: (1) to provide detailed documentation about the current status of knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes about AD and community services among Korean immigrants, and (2) to examine the relationships among knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes about AD and community services use and how they are affected by other factors (e.g., acculturation, exposure to AD, concern about developing illness, and sociodemographic characteristics).;Using a self-administered questionnaire, data was collected from 209 middle-aged and elderly first generation Korean Americans residing in Los Angeles County.;The results indicate that many Korean immigrants have a fatalistic view about memory loss in old age, consider AD insanity, and perceive AD as the result of personal or environmental factors other than disease. They showed a high level of awareness about available services, but had lower levels of knowledge about details (e.g., contents of services and access information). They were very favorable about using services in AD care. Structural Equation Modeling analyses suggest important roles of exposure to AD and knowledge levels of AD and community services in the process of constructing people's perceptions about AD and attitudes about service use. Implications for social work program development and practice as well as recommendations for future research are discussed.