SOCIAL study
The SOCIAL study aims to examine the social consequences of Alzheimer's dementia.
Social Cognition and Functioning in Alzheimer’s Dementia (SOCIAL) study
Impaired social functioning is a core feature of dementia and declines progressively through the disease course, but we do not currently understand the specific causes of this decline and have no effective treatments for social functioning. Social cognitive impairment, particularly impaired theory of mind (meaning inability to understand that other people have other thoughts and conceptualise what those thoughts might be), is a likely major cause of this decline and, if this is established, it could be a target for future interventions which aim to maintain social cognition. We therefore aim to test whether theory of mind impairment, or those in other areas of social cognition, are associated with decline in social functioning in people with mild Alzheimer’s dementia.
Our SOCIAL Study Publications
Apathy and Social Behaviour in Two Samples of Older Adults
Ramchand A, Bethell J, Chapman H, Sommerlad A. Alzheimer’s Dement. 2026;2:e70065
Factors associated with the social behaviour of people with Alzheimer’s dementia: a video observation study
Shaw J, Rodgers F, Kavustu D, Wang Y, Assaad S, Livingston G, Sommerlad A. Brain Sciences 2025; 15:1205
What did the study involve?
We finished recruitment in January 2025 and follow-up in February 2026. We recruited 208 people with mild Alzheimer’s dementia and a family or friend informants for them from ten NHS Memory Clinics:
- North London NHS Foundation Trust
- Devon Partnership NHS Trust
- Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
- North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust
- Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust
- Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust
- Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
- North East London NHS Foundation Trust
- Somerset NHS Foundation Trust
- Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust
At baseline, we assessed social cognition using a detailed neuropsychological battery, and social functioning. At 4 and 8 months, participants remotely rated their social functioning using a questionnaire and the full battery of testing was repeated at 1 year follow-up.
In our Remote Monitoring sub-study, participants with a mobile phone had remote digital monitoring using a mobile phone application throughout the study duration. And in our Behavioural Observation sub-study, participants had their social behaviour assessed during a video-recorded semi-structured social interaction at baseline and 1 year follow-up.
Study Protocol
Further information about the study including the full study protocol is available on the ISRCTN Registry website: Register number 61917909.
Participant Information Sheets
Contact details
For more information, please contact
- Email: a.sommerlad@ucl.ac.uk
- Telephone: +44 (0)20 7679 9248