Aging in Place During a Pandemic: Neighborhood Engagement and Environments Since the COVID-19 Pandemic Onset
| Autor: | Lindsay C. Kobayashi, Melissa Cannon, Jessica M. Finlay, Gabriella Y. Meltzer |
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| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
Aging in place
media_common.quotation_subject Population Ethnic group Qualitative thematic analysis Rurality Residence Characteristics Environmental gerontology Humans Personality Longitudinal Studies AcademicSubjects/SOC02600 education Pandemics Socioeconomic status Aged media_common education.field_of_study Person-place fit COVID-19 General Medicine United States Walkability Independent Living Geriatrics and Gerontology Thematic analysis Psychology Gerontology Research Article Civic life Demography |
| Zdroj: | The Gerontologist |
| ISSN: | 1758-5341 0016-9013 |
| DOI: | 10.1093/geront/gnab169 |
| Popis: | Background and Objectives The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may fundamentally change neighborhood environments and ways of aging in place. This research aimed to investigate perceptions of and engagement in neighborhoods since the pandemic onset among aging Americans. Research Design and Methods Data were from the COVID-19 Coping Study, a longitudinal cohort study of health and well-being of U.S. adults aged 55 years or older during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the present analysis, we conducted a qualitative thematic analysis of responses to an open-ended survey question about how respondents felt that COVID-19 has affected their neighborhood and relationships with neighbors. The survey data were collected June–September 2020 and analyzed for a random-stratified subsample of 1,000 study participants. Sampling quotas for age, gender, race/ethnicity, and education aimed to match the U.S. population aged 55 years or older (average age: 67.7 years). Results We identified 4 overarching themes: altered neighborly social interactions, support levels, and community environments; and no observed changes. Geographic factors that affected neighborhood engagement included age structure, sociopolitical diversity, urbanicity/rurality, and walkability; while individual factors included age, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, political orientation, health status, duration of residence, lifestyle, and personality. Discussion and Implications The results highlight resilience among aging adults and their neighbors, sources of individual and community vulnerability, and opportunities to strengthen social infrastructure to support aging in place since the pandemic onset. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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