Articles
The Journal on Active Aging brings articles of value to professionals dedicated to older-adult quality of life. Content sweeps across the active-aging landscape to focus on education and practice. Find articles of interest by searching the article archives in three ways: Enter a keyword in the articles search bar; click on search by topic; or type a keyword or phrase in the general search bar at the top of the page.
Topic- Community design
Access to nature boosts physical activity among older adults, saves staff time by Susan Rodiek, Ph.D., NCARB
On September 13, 2010, my colleagues and I were gratified to receive a professional award from the American Society of Landscape Architects at the society’s annual meeting in Washington, DC. That award, and the recognition our team has received from numerous organizations that provide long-term care to older adults, reinforced the value of the time and effort we put into developing an instrument that makes environmental evaluations of assisted living communities more quantifiable and reliable, and enables providers to compare satisfaction-related outcomes associated with physical environments.
We developed the instrument based on seven key principles that evaluate specific environmental qualities in assisted living communities (For more information, see Principles for outdoor areas that encourage resident participation on page XX). We then identified up to 10 ratable items that appeared to be the main components of each principle, resulting in a total of 63 individual items, which we used in the evaluation tool. After evaluating 68 randomly selected communities in various parts of the United States, and surveying 1,560 residents and staff, we identified a number of landscape features that were strongly associated with outdoor usage.
Community design
Why older-adult playgrounds present a world of possibilities by Marilynn Larkin, MA
At first glance, the words older-adult playground may seem like an oxymoron. Aren’t playgrounds for children? Well, yes and no. Most existing playgrounds were built with children in mind. But a new wave of playgrounds—born of an understanding of the value of play and conceived with older adults, or older adults and children, in mind—are moving off the drawing boards and into communities in the United States1 and beyond.
moreCommunity design
Designing wellness facilities and living environments by Donna Jackel
Choice is the buzzword in today’s housing market for older adults. The challenge, say experts, is how to meet the needs of current clients while building in flexibility for future residents.
The average age that people move into independent living communities is trending upward, rising from 80 to 84 over the past decade,1 according to Edie Smith, senior vice president and research director at Oxford, Mississippi-based ProMatura Group, a full-service market research and advisory firm specializing in age 50-plus consumers. Meanwhile, the needs and desires of the 78 million or so Baby Boomers in the United States are influencing everything from building design to dining services.
Community design
Design strategies support active lifestyles among people living with dementia by Margaret Calkins, PhD, CAPS, EDAC
There is clear and convincing evidence of the benefits of physical exercise on the cognitive performance of older adults, both those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or a related dementia and those without symptoms of dementia.1–10 You likely agree with the value of continued physical activity, and thus this article will explore how physical and social environments can be designed to encourage people living with all levels of dementia (from very early to later stages) to continue to be physically active.
An encouraging environment includes spaces designed to support specific physical activities, such as gyms, exercise rooms and pools and spaces, as well as adjacencies and amenities that support less structured physical activity. Our focus will be on designing spaces for less structured activity.
Community design
Engaging older adults in indoor and outdoor environments
Hours have been spent in research, discussions and negotiations. Funding is confirmed, finally. The architect has drawn the final plans, and the building committee signed off. But one question remains: What will encourage older adults to use the places and spaces so carefully diagramed on paper?
It’s the question that should be the final test of any new building project. The investment in a project is measured by how much the new or remodeled building or landscape feature is used by its intended audience. A beautiful patio or walking trail may appear, but what makes it desirable to go outdoors? A modern and well-equipped fitness center is built, but what moves older adults to use it—frequently? New furniture in a new building may appear, but will that alone inspire social interaction?
Community design
Creating an enhanced return on investment in assisted living communities by Professor Geoffrey Booth and Susan Rodiek, PhD
As we move through the chapters of our lives, patterns of behavior and choice are reinforced, and fond memories of the places that trigger these memories become increasingly important to life satisfaction and well-being. For older adults, times spent in back yards and on family outings are part of these memories. For this reason, assisted living communities that successfully balance the interconnection between the indoor and outdoor living environments can significantly enhance their competitive attraction, reduce the risk to their net cash flows and reinforce their return on investment (ROI).
Getting the balance right between the real estate opportunity, the real estate offer and the return was the subject of research completed in 2011 at the College of Architecture at Texas A&M University’s Center for Health Systems & Design, and soon to be published in the Health Environments Research and Design Journal (HERD).
