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Patterns of Residential Adjustment for Older Person: Who will Recover and How Do They Recover? A Study in Different Residential Environments in Hong Kong

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Abstract

This study seeks to understand the residential adjustment process by examining patterns and rates of adjustment of older people. Research to date has reported that circumstantial and individual factors affect adjustment after residential relocation and various patterns of adjustment can occur. A representative sample of Hong Kong respondents aged 60 years or over was selected with the help of areal sampling and the use of a geographical information system analysis. The results showed that overall, many older persons experience a J-pattern (or linear pattern) of adjustment. Many who relocated to new towns were better adjusted from an early period. Conversely, those relocated to or within old urban areas adjusted at a slower rate and an ultimately lower level. The results provide grounds for optimism about older persons’ resilience with regard to relocation-related stress and some guidance for planners and policy makers.

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Notes

  1. Two specific methods are used to test the effects of them on psychological well-being. The first method multiples the raw income by housing-type (i.e., ypwb = βconstant + βincomexincome + βhousingxhousing + βincome × housing xincome × housing)—income and housing types are categorical variable. The second method uses the dummy coded income variable (i.e., ypwb = βconstant + βdummy_income1 × dummy_income1 + βdummy_income2x dummy_income2 + βdummy_income3 × dummy_income3 + βdummy_income4 × dummy_income4 + βdummy_income5 × dummy_income5 + βhousing × housing + βdummy_income1 × housing  × dummy_income1 × housing + βdummy_income2 × housing  × dummy_income2 × housing + βdummy_income3 × housing  × dummy_income3 × housing + βdummy_income4 × housing  × dummy_income4 × housing + βdummy_income5 × housing × dummy_income5 × housing).

  2. The decision to use this shorter version of the WHOQoL was based on academic and pragmatic reasons. Illiteracy is a prevalent characteristic of this cohort of older persons in Hong Kong (approximately 28 %, see Table 1), reflecting their generally low education. About 53 % of people over the age of 60 received no school or pre-primary education (Census and Statistics Department 2007). Only 22 % received education at primary level. Low education and high illiteracy were important issues because these can affect the respondents’ levels of interest in completing a lengthy questionnaire, even though the survey was face-to-face and the responses were marked by the interviewers.

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Acknowledgments

The research on which this article is based was supported by the University Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project Number: LU3018/01H).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Rehabilitation and Social Sciences, Tung Wah College, 18 Wylie Rd., King’s Park, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Kevin H. C. Cheng

  2. Lingnan University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    David R. Phillips & Oi-Ling Siu

  3. The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Anthony G. O. Yeh

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  1. Kevin H. C. Cheng
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Correspondence to Kevin H. C. Cheng.

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Cheng, K.H.C., Phillips, D.R., Siu, OL. et al. Patterns of Residential Adjustment for Older Person: Who will Recover and How Do They Recover? A Study in Different Residential Environments in Hong Kong. Soc Indic Res 119, 295–319 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-013-0493-6

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