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Neighborhood Characteristics and Quality of Life (QoL) of Older Adults: A Qualitative Exploration from the Perspective of Indian Older Adults (Case Study of Kolkata, India)

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Abstract

Population ageing combined with the disintegration of the traditional family structure is leading to increased vulnerability of the older adults, especially in the Southeast Asian countries like India. With decline in physical abilities, the older adults limit their daily activities to the peripheries of their familiar residential environment. Though the Indian older adults vary significantly in their perspective to life and ageing from their western counterparts, explorations of neighborhood parameters required for the well-being of the older adults have been limited in the Indian context. Though recent studies on Indian older adults reveal the emergence of groups of older adults with belief in independence and active ageing, a majority of the older adults in India still hold on to traditional beliefs systems like intergenerational inter-dependence, and disengagement in old age. Since the aim of the present study is to understand the link between neighborhood features and the overall QoL from a holistic approach, the study adopts the qualitative research technique which allows the freedom to explore the concept from varied perspectives. The study collects data through discussions with 83 older adults divided in in nine groups residing in nine different neighborhoods in Kolkata, India. The technique of content analysis was then conducted on the findings from focus group discussions to identify a holistic list of activities and their associated neighborhood infrastructure and attributes, perceived to contribute to the QoL domains of Indian older adults. The findings of this study can be useful to policy makers in formulating design guidelines for the built environment in order to cater to the overall QoL of the older adults.

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Acknowledgements

This paper is a part of a doctoral thesis on identifying urban neighborhood level infrastructure catering to the QoL of Indian elderly, submitted at Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, India. The first author had conducted the research work for this paper during her Ph.D at the Department of Architecture and Regional Planning, IIT Kharagpur, India and she was a recipient of the institute scholarship (from IIT Kharagpur) during her Ph.D. The research conducted in this paper is also a part of the research project—Improving Quality of Life of Senior Citizens in Residential Neighbourhoods in an Indian Context (Project Code: LCR) (Sanction Letter No. F.NO.4-22/2014-TS.I, Dt. 23-01-2014), under the mega project Future of Cities at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, India, supported by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), India. The principal investigators of this project were Prof. Sanghamitra Basu (Retired Professor, Department of Architecture and Regional Planning, IIT Kharagpur),Prof. Debapratim Pandit (Professor, Department of Architecture and Regional Planning, IIT Kharagpur) and Prof. Suhita Chopra Chatterjee (Professor, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Kharagpur). The survey for this paper was funded from the project, LCR. The authors sincerely thank Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, India and MHRD, India for providing the necessary facilities and opportunities to prepare this research paper and funding the research program.

Funding

Name of the Research Project: Improving quality of life of senior citizens in residential neighborhoods in an Indian context (LCR). Name of the Sponsoring Agency: MHRD, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA, DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION, SHASTRI BHAWAN, NEW DELHI. The first author was a recipient of the institute scholarship (from IIT Kharagpur), during her Ph.D at IIT Kharagpur, India.

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  1. Department of Planning and Architecture, National Institute of Technology Rourkela, Rourkela, India

    Suparna Saha

  2. Department of Architecture and Regional Planning, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India

    Suparna Saha & Debapratim Pandit

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  1. Suparna Saha
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Correspondence to Suparna Saha.

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The manuscript has not been submitted to any other journal. The submitted is original and have not been published elsewhere in any form or language. Results are presented clearly, honestly, and without fabrication, falsification or inappropriate data manipulation. No data, text, or theories by others are presented as if they were the author’s own (‘plagiarism’). Proper acknowledgements to other works has been given. 

Informed Consent

Since the survey conducted in this research is a part of a research project being conducted at IIT Kharagpur, India, the concerned authorities were informed prior to the survey.

Ethical Treatment of Experimental Subjects (Animal and Human)

For the surveys conducted in housing complexes, a letter explaining the purpose and type of the survey was first submitted to a member/ chairman/ head of the housing/ society and the surveys could be conducted only after they permitted us to conduct the survey. Before starting the survey in all the study areas, all the participants were explained about the purpose of the survey, the questions to be asked, the approximate time duration of the survey and shown the questionnaire format and then the participants were included in the survey only if they gave their verbal consent to the survey. They were also explained that they could leave the survey if they felt uncomfortable or disinterested at any point of time, and could choose to not answer any question if they felt uncomfortable or unwilling. Besides, the personal details (names, address, etc.) of the participants were not documented. In the end of each survey, the responses were summarized and read out to the participants.

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Saha, S., Pandit, D. Neighborhood Characteristics and Quality of Life (QoL) of Older Adults: A Qualitative Exploration from the Perspective of Indian Older Adults (Case Study of Kolkata, India). Ageing Int 49, 78–111 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12126-023-09530-z

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