Definitions, key themes and aspects of 'ageing in place': a scoping review

Katinka E. Pani-Harreman*, Gerrie J. J. W. Bours, Ines Zander, Gertrudis I. J. M. Kempen, Joop M. A. van Duren

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal(Systematic) Review article peer-review

Abstract

The purpose is to give an overview of the extent, range and nature of existing definitions of the concept 'ageing in place'. Providing such an overview may be helpful, for policy makers, researchers, communities and service providers, to make sense of the versatility and uses of the concept, and allow the improvement and increase the success of efforts to contribute to the quality of life of older people. The overview was created using Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review methodology. Out of 3,692 retrieved articles, 34 met the inclusion criteria. These studies concentrate on the following five key themes concerning 'ageing in place': 'ageing in place' in relation to place, to social networks, to support, to technology and to personal characteristics. Each of these key themes consists of other aspects, like physical place and attachment to place for the keyword place. This study concludes that the concept 'ageing in place' is broad and can be viewed from different (i.e. five) key themes. A more thorough understanding of 'ageing in place' provides knowledge about the existing key themes and aspects. These findings might provide practical support for professionals and governments when they develop their policies about 'ageing in place' integrally and to develop fit policies.

Original languageEnglish
Article numberPII S0144686X20000094
Pages (from-to)2026-2059
Number of pages34
JournalAgeing & Society
Volume41
Issue number9
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2021

Keywords

  • 'ageing in place'
  • ENVIRONMENTS
  • HEALTH
  • HOME
  • LATER LIFE
  • OLDER-PEOPLE
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • home
  • independent living
  • liveability
  • older people
  • scoping review

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