Don't Bother Trying, They Won't Do It! Effect of Responsive Behaviors on the Montessori Assessment System

Objectives: The Montessori Assessment System (MAS) is an assessment tool that aims at assessing preserved abilities in persons with moderate to severe dementia and to serve as basis for person-centered interventions. As responsive behaviors are highly frequent in this population, we assessed their possible influence on the MAS administration and results. Methods: 193 persons with a diagnosis of dementia in the moderate to severe stages living in nursing homes completed the MAS. Responsive behaviors were assessed by the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI). Results: The NPI scores were heterogeneous, but responsive behaviors were present for at least 5 NPI domains in more than 50% of the participants. While NPI scores had weak relationships with MAS completion time and total score, primarily for the hallucinations, euphoria, and aberrant motor behaviors domains, a large majority of the participants fully completed the MAS. Conclusions: The presence of responsive behaviors as assessed by the NPI does not limit MAS administration, despite minor influence on MAS score and completion time. Clinical implications: The MAS may be applied to persons with moderate to severe dementia presenting responsive behaviors. Assessment of preserved abilities can greatly improve the design of person-centered care plans in this population.