The Nun Study and Alzheimer’s disease: Quality of vocation as a potential protective factor?

Data from the Nun Study, the most famous longitudinal epidemiology of Alzheimer’s disease to date, are analyzed and reformulated in terms of Max Weber’s discussion of the centrality of beruf – “calling” – fulfilling a life task in pursuit of a vocation. Qualitative differences in the Nuns’ vocations are uncovered, which are correlated to their resilience to dementia. Extrapolating, we argue that Alzheimer’s disease and the dementia reputed to it should be understood as a social pathology of contemporary civilization related to the loss of moral foundations from which coherent, meaningful life-projects can be conducted.