This research investigates the impact of critical events on families using an innovative method for studying historical data gathered from multiple family members. The Temporal Mapping Technique provides the means for characterizing the structure of family members' response to critical events over time and mark changes in this structure of responses. The research examines whether caregivers who are more stressed and depressed and patients whose behavior problems worsened, stayed stable or improved over the course of two years can be distinguished on the types of events experienced by the family, the family communication patterns as they discuss these events, and the patterns of congruence or discrepancy in family member's response to events. In accordance with boundary ambiguity theory, it is predicted that more distressed caregivers and persons with dementia will come from families with significantly more negative than positive events, from families whose interactions shows more conflict and families whose responses to events show more discrepancy.

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