[Psychometric properties of Profile of Mood States (POMS) in people with dementia and its application in the evaluation of the effects of therapeutic creative dance].

INTRODUCTION

There is a growing need for scientific studies and tools that allow the evaluation of the effects at an affective level of some non-pharmacological therapies for people with dementia such as the creative therapeutic dance.

AIMS

To explore the validity and reliability of the Profile of Mood States (POMS) in people with dementia and to analyse the possible differences in the scores of the participants before and after sessions of creative therapeutic dance.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

POMS was administered to 36 people with dementia before and after four group sessions of creative therapeutic dance. To verify the construct validity, PANAS and STAXI-2 were also administered.

RESULTS

The POMS presented a good internal consistency for each factor and an excellent one for the total scale. The temporal stability was medium-high. Convergent validity results support construct validity. After the creative therapeutic dance sessions, POMS factors tension, depression and confusion were reduced, while vigour increased significantly. There was no effect on fatigue and anger.

CONCLUSIONS

The validity and reliability of POMS have been demonstrated in a population with dementia. Creative therapeutic dance can offer emotional benefits for people with dementia.