Environmental Support for Outdoor Activities and Older People's Quality of Life

The outdoor environment provides older people with opportunities to be active, have contact with nature and meet friends and neighbours. Research has shown that such outdoor activities have substantial benefits for older people's well-being. However, going outdoors is often difficult for them due to increasing frailty and environmental barriers. This study argues that a neighbourhood environment facilitating older people's outdoor activities has a positive effect on their well-being. Small-scale studies were conducted to explore the concept of "environmental support" for outdoor activities and its effect on people's Quality of Life (QOL). Two methods were employed to identify the degree of environmental support. One was based on the assessment of neighbourhood environments and the other focused on outdoor activities people undertake. Analysis found highly significant correlations between environmental support and participants' QOL in both measurements even after controlling for participants' functional capability. The results suggest that outdoor environments adjacent to where one resides play a significant role in older people's QOL. (C) 2005 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.