PROJECT ABSTRACT This study examines efficacy of a theoretically-based, positive health focused, tailored, nurse-delivered, family- centered intervention: “Daily Engagement in Meaningful Activity” (DEMA). DEMA is designed for older persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and family caregivers. Nearly 20% of Americans over 65 have MCI. Patients with MCI (patients) experience reduced life satisfaction due to patients’ increasing lack of confidence and diminished ability to perform meaningful and/or important activities, leading to diminished meaningful activity engagement, depressive symptoms, and anxiety. Caregivers lack confidence to manage their own and their patient’s daily challenges, leading to high caregiver burden, depressive symptoms, and anxiety. Patients and caregivers (dyads) report diminished satisfaction with their communication and relationship due to disagreements regarding the patient’s functional ability. Patient/caregiver behavioral interventions are more successful when they occur before progression to dementia. Previous cognitive intervention studies used limited, single domain foci (e.g., cognitive training, exercise, or nutrition) that may not be meaningful enough to sustain patient engagement long enough to improve life satisfaction. Emerging evidence, including our pilot studies, suggests regular engagement in self-identified meaningful activities can improve life satisfaction and depression and reduces risk of developing dementia. The purpose of this randomized controlled trial is to determine efficacy of DEMA compared to an information support (IS) attention control group. DEMA: 1) fosters active listening to increase dyad agreement in perceptions of patient functional ability; 2) helps dyads enhance engagement in and satisfaction with self-identified meaningful activities through problem solving to assess, prioritize, and achieve identified meaningful activity goals; 3) builds on patient’s existing interests and skills; and 4) provides information and didactic support to address priority concerns and dyad adjustment to functional changes and plan for the future. Specific aims are: 1) test DEMA’s efficacy for improve patient/ caregiver life satisfaction; 2) test DEMA’s efficacy to improve activity performance, depressive symptoms and anxiety in patients and burden, depressive symptoms, anxiety in caregivers; and, 3) explore a sub-sample of patients with higher depressive symptoms for improvement in health outcomes over time, compared to non- depressed patients. Eligible patient/caregiver dyads (n = 200) will be randomized to a 7-session DEMA or IS intervention, with data collected at baseline and 3 times over 9 months. Mixed model effects will be analyzed. If efficacious, DEMA will provide high impact on the care of patients and caregivers by maintaining their engagement in meaningful activities to improve patient and caregiver life satisfaction, depressive symptoms, anxiety, relationship satisfaction, activity perfo...