Clinical impact of apathy in motor neurone disease (CIAMND)
About the project
Apathy is a prevalent behaviour change and can be debilitating for people living with MND. It is multidimensional, composed of different subtypes:
- Executive apathy- lack of motivation for planning, organisation or attention
- Initiation apathy- lack of motivation for self-generation of thoughts and/or actions
- Emotional apathy- indifferent, emotional neutrality, flatness or blunting
The Dimensional Apathy Scale (DAS) assesses these different types of apathy, independent of physical disability, and previous research has shown that some people living with MND show a characteristic Initiation apathy, which relates to problems in thinking or cognition in some people living with MND.
The aim of this collaborative, longitudinal project is to investigate the real-life impact of specific types of apathy on people living with MND, and their families.
Also, the secondary aim is to establish the use of a brief DAS (b-DAS) through collaboration with an ALS specialist clinic in Pennsylvania, USA and the University of East Anglia.
Information and news relating to the Dimensional Apathy Scale can be found on das.psy.ed.ac.uk
Funder(s)
Publication(s)
Primary location
Principal Investigator
Other people involved
Prof Sharon Abrahams, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
Dr Zachary Simmons, Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania, USA
Prof Eneida Mioshi, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
Ms Kaitlin Dudley, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
Ms Debbie Gray, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK