Assessing correlates of concern about developing Alzheimer's dementia among adults with no family history of the disease.

In an attempt to add to the knowledge about concerns regarding the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD), a sample of 186 Jewish and Arab adults with no family history of the disease were examined on the basis of sociodemographic and health characteristics, social-cognitive determinants, and knowledge about AD. Nearly 50 percent of the participants reported being very concerned about developing AD. Memory problems and the likelihood of developing the disease emerged as significant predictors of concern about AD. The need to expand the use of theoretically-based models, including social-cognitive determinants, for the study of specific concerns about AD as a basis for the development of educational programs is discussed.