| Author: | Wang, Siqiang |
| Title: | Older people’s neighborhood satisfaction and well-being: a capability approach framework for community facility planning in urban old district |
| Advisors: | Yung, Hiu-kwan Esther (BRE) |
| Degree: | Ph.D. |
| Year: | 2023 |
| Subject: | City planning Older people Barrier-free design for older people Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations |
| Department: | Department of Building and Real Estate |
| Pages: | xvii, 329 pages : color illustrations, map |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | Rapid aging population has already become a global issue which brings the significant challenges for urban planners. Based on the WHO's recommendation, community facility has been identified as an important element that could help to support older people's ability to aging-in-place. However, existing studies lack a comprehensive understanding of planning and design of different types of community facilities and their relationship with older people's usage pattern. In addition, the role of older people's mobility in their use of community facilities is also unclear. Thus, there is a lack of comprehensive evaluation framework to understand the relationships among provision of community facilities, older people's capability to access, usage of community facilities in the neighborhood and their well-being. Given this background, this research aims to develop a comprehensive framework to examine the association among provision of community facility, older people's mobility and usage of community facility, and help to increase older people's neighborhood satisfaction and well-being in local neighborhoods in urban old districts. To achieve the main aim, a mixed methods research design, including both qualitative research methods (focus group meeting and expert interview), and quantitative research methods (spatial analysis, GPS experiment and questionnaire survey), is employed in this research. The data analysis employs correlation analysis, generalized estimating equation model and structure equation modeling. In general, this research develops a novel framework for understanding the community facility planning and older people's well-being by adopting and extending the Capability Approach theory originated from the welfare economics discipline. It provides a novel framework to understand the planning and design of different types of community facilities and its effect on neighborhood satisfaction and well-being. The resource of community facility is investigated regarding its equity provision and planning and design quality. The notion of Capability is revealed and analyzed through applying the mobility concept in the urban planning field. The findings make advancement to the current Capability Approach theory to embrace the special needs of the older people. First, this research illustrates that the provision of community facility resources is not equity among different neighborhoods, especially after urban renewal process in urban old district. It is also found that older people may not have equal right to use community facilities considering their capabilities, such as the inequity provision of community facilities among neighborhoods with different socio-economic status, TOD development mode and their mobility. Second, this research suggests that planning and design quality of community facility resource is related to the functioning (actual usage) of community facility. Older people's frequency of visiting community facilities is mainly affected by the purpose of visiting a community facility. Planning and design quality of the community facility are found to be significantly associated with older people's satisfaction level with using a community facility. Furthermore, older people's higher satisfaction level and usage level of community facilities could increase their physical and psychological well-being. Third, this research expands the knowledge of older people's mobility (capability) and usage of community facility (functioning). This research find that distribution of community facilities is related to older people's mobility pattern (pattern), and usage of community facility is only associated with older people's out-of-home activity level. Satisfaction of walking environment and public transport have significant effect on older people's satisfaction level with community facilities, and then also affect their neighborhood satisfaction. Furthermore, older people's mobility pattern is significantly different between those living in public housing estates and private housing estates. It may be due to the different distribution of community facilities result from planning mode of public housing estates. Overall, this research proposes the capability approach framework of community facility for older people as following: the provision of community facility resource indirectly affect older people's well-being through affecting their usage of and satisfaction with community facility. Mobility has been identified as important capability element that affect older people's use of community facility and well-being, especially walking environment and out-of-home activity level. Perceived built environment is identified as the significant conversion factor that help older people to convert community facility resources to well-being. From practical perspective, this research also provides essential principles and useful insights for community facility planning and design which could help urban planners to enhance aging-in-place in the neighborhood and improve older people's well-being. It provides the supplementary reference to existing planning standards and guidelines which mainly focus on the quantity of community facility provision. It also emphasizes the importance for urban planning to improve older people's capability (mobility) to use community facilities. In addition, the findings also provide insights for the planning of built and social environment of community to facilitate the desire of aging-in-place for older people. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | open access |
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