Quiz Entry - updated: 2026.10.22
What is a therapeutic lie in the care of people with dementia?
A lie told to be polite or to protect someone from a truth that would burden them; in dementia care, e.g. a nurse saying a daughter is coming to visit today to motivate the person to get up, when no visit is planned.
A lie, following Sissela Bok, is "any intentionally deceptive message which is stated". The therapeutic lie is the variant told with good intentions:
| Aspect | Content |
|---|---|
| Definition | a lie told to be polite or to protect someone from a truth that would burden them |
| Intentions | avoid injury and harm; protect the person's feelings; improve well-being; achieve compliance with medication; reduce agitation and aggressive, dangerous behaviour |
| Example | a nurse tells a person with dementia that her daughter is visiting today, to motivate her to get up, although no visit is planned |
Why it is a hard case: the intentions are all beneficence, but lying bypasses the person's ability to choose on the basis of reality (autonomy) and risks the trust on which care depends. The next card works through a concrete case.
Go deeper:
Erdmann (2024): Menschen mit Demenz anlügen und täuschen? — open-access, principle-based case discussion (German).- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: The Definition of Lying and Deception — how lying is defined, including Bok's account.