CREC (CReativity in Everyday life Challenges), a new cognitive stimulation programme for patients affected by Mild Cognitive Impairment: a pilot study

Divergent thinking (DT) has attracted neuroscientists’ attention for its potential role in terms of diagnosis and rehabilitation for patients affected by neurodegenerative diseases. Indeed, some recent studies have demonstrated the relationships between DT and cognitive reserve (CR) that is considered as an essential mechanism for coping with brain damage. Undoubtedly, CR is a pivotal psychological construct for prevention and intervention strategies which try to promote successful aging and slow the onset of dementia . Furthermore, the effectiveness of cognitive training based on creativity has been proved by several meta-analytic research. However, few of these training have been applied to elderly people with neurological disease. This pilot study aimed to preliminary evaluates the feasibility and the possible positive effects of an adapted version of a creativity training, CREC, “CReativity in Everyday-life Challenges” (Colautti & Antonietti, 2018; Colautti et al., 2018) in elderly patients affected by Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI).