Background: Although personcentered dementia care is recognized as a compassionate approach to implementing caring methods when addressing behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, we still do not understand how assistant nurses, who are closest to the patient, use everyday interactions to address care challenges while endeavoring non pharmacological care. 

Aim: To identify the main concern of assistant nurses´ care interactions when encountering people with behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia in nursing homes, and develop a classic grounded theory.  

Methods: An exploratory design using the classic grounded theory method and participant observation was employed. Ten assistant nurses were observed during 70 hours of their shifts in two nursing homes.

Results: The Theory of Validating Identity was developed as a middlerange theory grounded on striving to maintain orientation, which became the core category. The Theory of Validating Identity elucidates care interactions between assistant nurses and care users, focusing on care users' identities. The integration of two dimensions — body-mind-soul and timespace and their categories and properties, illustrates two care contexts that support identity affirmation while offering reassurance during times of confusion.

Conclusion: The life story and other identified interactions within the framework of The Theory of Validating Identity demonstrate the smooth care maneuvers performed by assistant nurses that help implement appropriate care strategies for individuals affected by behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. This approach enhances nurses' caregiving skills, reduces the use of sedative medications, and promotes personcentered dementia care, thereby supporting the wellbeing of both care users and nurses. The Swedish Ethical Review Authority approved this study. Registration number: 2023-03560-01