Comparing two different orientation strategies for promoting indoor traveling in people with Alzheimer’s disease Alessandro O. Caffo ` a, *, Frans Hoogeveen b , Mari Groenendaal b , Viviana A. Perilli a , Marjori Damen c , Fabrizio Stasolla d , Giulio E. Lancioni e , Andrea Bosco a a Department of Educational Sciences, Psychology, Communication, University of Bari, Italy b Psychogeriatrics Lectorate, The Hague University of Applied Sciences, The Netherlands c Leiden University, The Netherlands d Lega del Filo d’Oro Research Center, Molfetta, Italy e Department of Neuroscience and Sense Organs, University of Bari, Italy 1. Introduction Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative brain disorder that usually occurs in old age, and is marked by a decline in cognitive functions such as remembering, reasoning, and planning, and by a variety of behavioral and psychiatric symptoms, such as agitation, delusions and depression (Ferri et al., 2005; Mayeux, 2003). People suffering from AD often show disorders in spatial and topographical orientation, at first restricted to new and unfamiliar environments, and then extended to familiar ones (e.g., Caffo ` et al., 2012; Monacelli, Cushman, Kavcic, & Duffy, 2003), with negative implications on independence and self-confidence (Conde-Sala, Garre-Olmo, Turro ´ -Garriga, Lo ´ pez-Pousa, & Vilalta-Franch, 2009; Leo ´ n-Salas et al., 2013; McLaughlin et al., 2010; Passini, Pigot, Rainville, & Tetreault, 2000; Rainville, Passini, & Marchand, 2001). Recently, Caffo ` et al. (in press) reviewed the strategies for reducing topographical orientation disorders in elderly people with dementia, specifically in persons with AD. Eight experimental studies published between 1981 and 2013 were analyzed and their approaches were classified as restorative or compensatory, depending on whether they relied or not on residual Research in Developmental Disabilities 35 (2014) 572–580 ARTICLE INFO Article history: Received 30 November 2013 Accepted 4 December 2013 Available online Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease Topographical disorientation Assistive technology Cognitive training Restorative and compensatory strategies ABSTRACT The present study compared two different types of orientation strategies: an assistive technology program (AT, i.e., remotely controlled sound/light devices) and a backward chaining procedure (BC) for promoting indoor traveling in four persons with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease (AD). A social validation assessment of the two strategies was also conducted employing undergraduate students as raters. For three out of four participants, AT intervention was more effective than the BC procedure, whilst for the fourth participant the two types of intervention had a comparably satisfying efficacy. A doubly Multivariate Analysis of Variance on social validation assessment data provided generally more positive scores for the AT intervention. These results suggest that AT programs (a) can be valuably employed for restoring and maintaining independence in indoor traveling in people with moderate to severe AD, and (b) might be perceived as preferable to conventional teaching strategies within daily contexts. ß 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author at: Department of Educational Sciences, Psychology, Communication, University of Bari, Piazza Umberto I, 1, 70121 Bari, Italy. Tel.: +39 080 5521477. E-mail address: alessandro.caffo@uniba.it (A.O. Caffo ` ). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Research in Developmental Disabilities 0891-4222/$ – see front matter ß 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2013.12.003