Shoshi Keisari

Spouses caring for their partners with dementia face multifaceted challenges influenced by their marital life course. The current study employed theater-based participatory action research to explore and understand the lived experiences of women caring for spouses with dementia. Over 10 sessions, seven caregiver-women engaged in theatrical methods to explore the personal, familial, and social transformations they were facing. Individual guided recall interviews were conducted while reviewing segments from the videotaped sessions. The data which included video recordings of the sessions and post-interviews were analyzed using an inductive reflexive thematic approach integrated with the Six-Keys model for analyzing the dramatic scenes. Three main themes emerged from the analysis: (a) redefining roles within the couple’s relationship, (b) redefining roles within the close environment, and (c) redefining roles in relation to state health care institutions and authority figures. The discussion centers on the three lived continua that captured the findings: (a) integration versus splitting; (b) loneliness versus shared experiences, and (c) suppression versus activism. It is shown how the theatrical methods enabled the caregiver-women to explore their life-course experiences and their changing roles and rehearse new strategies for coping and communicating.

Healthy cognitive aging emphasizes preserving cognitive functions essential for independence and well-being. Developing interventions that promote cognition and resilience in older individuals is crucial. Social playfulness, characterized by spontaneity and mutual enjoyment, allows individuals to step away from routine roles and engage in novel and surprising exchanges. Emerging evidence suggests that social playfulness is a promising approach for supporting cognitive functions in aging in a joyful and engaging way. In this theory and hypothesis manuscript, we propose a neurobiological pathway mediating the effects of social playfulness on cognition. Playful interactions generate high levels of uncertainty, requiring continuous adaptation and exploration. We suggest that these demands engage the locus coeruleus-noradrenaline (LC-NA) system, which is crucial for navigating uncertainty and sustaining arousal and flexibility needed to adapt to the dynamic and unpredictable nature of playful interactions. Importantly, the collaborative and safe environment of playfulness transforms this uncertainty-driven noradrenergic activation into an engaging and rewarding experience, enhancing focus, positive affect, and flexibility. In older adults, where LC-NA functionality may decline with age, social playfulness could counteract cognitive decline by upregulating this system. We review evidence linking LC-NA integrity to cognitive health and explore how playfulness might mitigate the deterioration of cognitive functioning by training executive functions and promoting novelty and exploration. This framework bridges neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and creative-arts therapies, highlighting social playfulness as a tool for healthy aging. We emphasize the need for further research to validate this hypothesis and explore its implications for designing interventions that leverage social playfulness to enhance cognitive resilience in older populations.

Background: Studies have shown that engaging in playful social activities offers valuable opportunities for development throughout one's lifespan and are associated with enhanced physical and psychological well-being in older age. However, research that examined playful interactions in the online setting is still scarce. The aim of the present study was to assess the impact of online playful interaction on emotional, social, and cognitive functions among the older population.Methods: Thirty-four older adults (aged 74–91, Mage=85) participated in a within-group study design. Participants took part in two 15-minute sessions of playful interaction and a control condition— personal conversation and an exercise class. Cognitive and subjective measures were taken before and after the sessions to assess socio-emotional and attentional functions.Findings: A significant interaction (Time X Type of Activity) was found, validating the playful interaction's positive effect on increasing Digit Span score. A significant increase was also found in the social measures (closeness and affiliation) following the playful interaction but not following the control condition. There was no significant interaction for the Stroop or for positive and negative affect. Conclusions: A short and focused online playful interaction with old-older adults had significant effects on cognitive and social functioning, even in an online platform.Implications: Healthcare providers working with older individuals can consider incorporating online playful activities into their daily routines to enhance cognitive functioning and social connectedness.

Processing the life story is vital to a human’s development, providing individuals with resources and promoting adaptation to changes throughout the life course. Narrative therapy is a main approach in psychotherapy that is found to positively affect individuals’ psychological well-being and mental health. This paper in the Zeitschrift für Psychodrama und Soziometrie (ZPS) presents the ways narrative therapy is integrated with role play and playback theatre in individual therapy sessions. Dramatic roles from different periods of one’s life are explored simultaneously as part of the therapeutic process to create a concrete and integrative representation of one’s life story. A case study illustrates the integration of narrative therapy, role reversal, and playback theater techniques in one-on-one sessions.

Recent studies have confirmed the positive effects of playback theatre groups for the older population. This article presents part of a larger study that examined the experiences of older women in Israel who took part in playback theatre groups in community centres. It explores one theme from the findings that centred on promoting change and growth. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with women aged 62–81 (N = 17) who had been involved in playback theatre groups for over six months. The data were subjected to reflexive thematic analysis. Five subthemes emerged from the analysis: (1) the creative process promotes change from introversion to openness; (2) expanding the self through bodywork and movement; (3) playfulness in playback theatre creates an ageless experience; (4) development in the group is assimilated into daily life and (5) the importance of the role of the conductor in the participants’ development. The findings highlight the importance of playback theatre and its contribution to promoting personal development and self-expression in older women. Through embodied expression, these women reported experiencing a meaningful connection to their ageing body. These results may provide the basis for developing community-based intervention programmes grounded in playback theatre for older women.