A Virtual Life Story Club Intervention to Improve Loneliness and Apathy in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Reminiscence therapy is a non-invasive, non-pharmacological intervention that has been shown to improve cognition, mood, functional status, quality of life, and apathy in older adults. Group reminiscence therapy combines structured social engagement and recounting of personal stories that address both social connection (a risk factor for cognitive decline) and cognition. Life story club© (LSC) is an established, non-profit organization that provides virtual, group reminiscence therapy for older adults to reduce loneliness and promote a sense of belonging and has not been formally studied.

The purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of a LSC© intervention to improve loneliness and apathy in community-dwelling older adults. This pilot study will be conducted to compare loneliness and apathy in lonely individuals without dementia at baseline who receive a virtual group reminiscence therapy intervention (vGRT). The intervention will be delivered weekly over 12 weeks. Loneliness and apathy will be assessed before and after the intervention as described in the Outcome Measures section of this registration. Feasibility will be assessed using quantitative and qualitative measures including feasibility of screening and enrollment, acceptability, and program satisfaction. Qualitative interviews will be conducted with a subset of 30 individuals to explore acceptability, barriers, and facilitators of the intervention. This study will provide evidence for the feasibility of a virtual group reminiscence therapy for community dwelling older adults to reduce loneliness and apathy. This approach is both innovative and pragmatic because it will leverage an existing community-based service, with an established infrastructure and track record within the community to deliver the intervention. As such, the proposed research has the potential for broad implications for community-based research and aligns with multiple translational science principles.