International Rural Aging Project

Invited Symposia

Housing and Infrastructure in Rural Areas – Challenges for the Elderly

Convener: Gloria Gutman
Director, Gerontology Research Centre, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada

Date Friday, June 9
Time 10:30 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Location Parlor A, Civic Center

Abstract
The 1998 WHO Director's Report notes that "the eradication of poverty, particularly housing poverty, is essential for sustainable human settlements and thus for sustainable development" and that "Quality of life depends on the indoor and outdoor conditions and spatial characteristics of villages, towns and cities" (WHO, 1998, p.128).

Although rural communities may have some social advantages for seniors, there is general consensus that the quality of housing in these settings is often poorer than in urban areas and that they offer less variety in housing options for the later years (Belden, 1992, Clark, 1992, Golant & La Greca, 1994, Keating, 1991, Lawton, 1980).

This symposium will examine current housing options and infrastructure issues affecting seniors living in rural settings in three northern hemisphere countries (Canada, Germany and Wales) and housing, social, and health policies and interventions that could optimize aging in place. To set the stage for discussion, the first paper will present a framework for comparing rural communities and social networks. Topics to be addressed include aging in place in purpose-built retirement communities compared with communities with a high rate of out-migration of young people with communities with stable populations but located in remote areas where residents are distant from services. As well, the support provided by social networks of varying size, composition and geographic spread will be considered. The second paper examines both social-structural and individual level variables. Using data from a 1999 survey, rural residents of East and West Germany are compared with respect to objective and subjective indicators of housing and living arrangements. Attention then turns to one of the subjective variables - housing satisfaction - and its value as a predictor variable for overall well-being. The third paper examines individual’s reasons for residential stability, using as its data source in-depth interviews over a 4-year period with 30 participants in the Bangor Longitudinal Study of Aging. An emergent theme of this work is that some people in rural settings age in place because they are reticent to move or lack the physical or mental energy to do so, some because of material culture and attachment to home, some for reasons relating to social networks and relationships, and others because there is no suitable or available alternative. The final paper, the most pragmatic of theset, addresses the latter issue. Examples of affordable and financially viable projects are presented, some representing creative conversion of buildings designed for other purposes. The focus of the paper is on identifying common development strategies that have enabled these projects to overcome traditional supply-demand obstacles of rural locations and which, if applied in other venues, might enable their successful replication.

Housing Alternatives for Seniors in Rural Canada: Examples, Program Delivery Issues and Development Strategies
Gloria Gutman, Nancy Gnaedinger, and Mary Ann Clarke Scott

The Social and Caring Contexts of Seniors in Rural Canada
Norah Keating, Janice Keefe, Anne Martin Matthews

Ageing in Place in Two Rural German Settings: Does East and West Still Make a Difference?
Hans-Werner Wahl, Heidrun Mollenkopf, Frank Oswald, and Oliver Schilling

Factors Affecting the Residential Stability of Older People in Rural Areas of Wales, United Kingdom
Vanessa Burholt

Continuing Education Credits
WV Social Work: 1.5 hrs