Joan R. McFadden

Factors That Influence Pre-Retirees' Propensity to Move at Retirement

The purpose of this study was to analyze the relative contributions of factors influencing preference to move upon retirement. Preference to move led to the propensity to move. Years in community, tenure preference upon retirement, opinion of size of house for retirement and existence of plans on where to retire led to both preference to move and propensity to move: structure preference led to preference to move. Maintenance skills led to the lessening of the propensity to move, and house size and age of respondent had a direct relationship to preference to move.

Aging in Place: Pre-Retirees’ View of Environmental Adaptation in Maintaining Independence

AbstractAging in place means being able to live independently in one’s current residence. This study examined the views of the future elderly to determine whether they plan to take a proactive stance in adapting their environment to meet their aging needs. Housing needs, preferences, policies, standards, and designs (barrier free, universal, accessible, and adaptable) are reviewed. An age stratified random sample of pre-retirees from three states (N=1033) assessed the feasibility of modifying their home to accommodate a wheelchair. The majority of the respondents were male, married, and 52 years old, with median family income between

Effects of Conditions and Satisfactions

35,000 and

Housing for Disabled Persons: To What Extent Will Today's Homes Accommodate Persons with Physical Limitations?

49,999. Eighty-two percent of the respondents indicated a preference to retire in single family homes, and 92 percent were residing in same. Number of sources of retirement income and being married were identified in multiple regression analyses as related to feasibility of altering current housing to accommodate a wheelchair.

Retirement Housing and Locational Preferences of The Depression and Early Baby Boom Age Cohorts

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to determine a causal relationship between constraints, conditions, satisfactions related to housing, and propensity to move at retirement using Morris and Winter’s Housing Adjustment Model. Data were analyzed for 1,175 preretirees in Oregon and Utah. Path analysis revealed that propensity to move was directly influenced (p<.05) by seven constraints -- age, level of education, gender, marital status, health status, location, and income sources after retirement -- and four intervening variables -- tenure, city condition, neighborhood satisfaction, and housing satisfaction. Suggesting a better understanding of retirement housing decisions could better equip communities as they facilitate to maximize the possibility of suitable, affordable, and supportive housing environments for the largest number of elderly people.

Housing Policy in the United States: A Contemporary Analysis

This article reviews the incidence of disability within the non-institutionalized U.S. resident population, with estimates of gender differences and severe limitations. Estimates of the desire for functional independence among the elderly are presented, and theoretical frameworks related to choice, consumer efficiency, consumer decisions, and housing norms are reviewed. Accommodation of a wheelchair was chosen as the measure to be studied because it is the means of mobility for those with the most severe mobility limitations. Three states, Oregon, Nevada, and Utah collected data on wheelchair accommodation of existing housing, resulting in a sample of 1,549 homeowners. Only 1% of the respondents indicated that their homes would accommodate a wheelchair at the present. However, 77% indicated that their homes could be modified to accommodate a wheelchair, and 22% responded that costs for modifications to their present homes would be prohibitive. Home economics educators have an obligation to educate the public to the needs for accessible and/or adaptable housing and unite architects, designers, home builders, and realtors in an effort to increase the proportion of wheelchair-accessible housing, to accommodate all types of mobility impairment regardless of age.

Kitchen Design: A Twenty-Year Comparison 1968:1988

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to compare the housing and locational preferences and plans for the first 10 years of retirement of two cohorts within the maturing population: the early baby boomers (born 1946–1954) and the Depression cohort (born 1930–1939). The data were collected as part of a telephone survey of Oregon and Utah residents. Chi-square analyses were used to determine whether there are significant differences between the two cohorts (N = 836). Early baby boom cohort respondents were found to be significantly different (p < .01 ) from Depression cohort respondents in terms of propensity to move: only 51% of early baby boomers plan to remain in current housing compared to 67% of Depression cohort respondents.

Housing Environment Important for Retirement

AbstractHousing policy in the United States is reviewed in this paper. Limited to the 21st century, federal legislation has encouraged, funded, subsidized, provided access to, and restricted U.S. housing. During the past 50 years, a number of laws have been passed and policies implemented purely as experimental actions. Some policies were discontinued when they became too costly or failed to produce intended outcomes. In response, new policies enacted to illuminate deficiencies often introduced other flaws. This paper discusses legislation and its intended outcomes and comes to the conclusion that contemporary housing legislation has evolved largely from trial and error rather than research or a theoretical model.The American Association of Housing Educators (AAHE) has an opportunity to contribute to improved housing policy. During its 25-year history, AAHE has made only cursory and peripheral contributions to such policy. AAHE’s one important contribution made to the housing literature describes housing ...

Housing and Community Retirement Preferences: are they Related to Anticipated Sources of Retirement Income?

AbstractOf all the rooms in the home, the kitchen has received the most attention in terms of design efficiency. Widely accepted standards for kitchen design have existed since the early 1960s; however, it has not been clear how carefully designers have adhered to them. This study examined kitchens presented as models in 1968 and 1988 consumer magazines. Content analysis was conducted to determine the kitchens’ conformity to fundamental kitchen design guidelines. The majority of kitchens were found to have one or more major flaws. The most common problem was cross traffic interruption of the work triangle. Other frequent problems included a lack of counter space next to the open side of the refrigerator and a lack of counter space next to the oven. Mean efficiency scores on a five-point scale were 3.79 in 1968 and declined to 3.50 in 1988.