고령자 삶의 만족도에 영향을 미치는 도시환경 분석 : 2016년 경기도민 삶의 질 조사를 중심으로

Abstract

This study examines the urban environmental factors affecting the satisfaction of life for the elderly in Gyeonggi province, Korea. World Health Organization (WHO) proposed the elderly-friendly guidelines which were classified into physical, social, economic, and health and safety domains. Based on the WHO guidelines, this study constructed the analysis data from the 2016 Quality of Life Survey for the residents of Gyeonggi province. Key findings and policy implications are as follows. First, as we expected, the quality of life satisfaction for the elderly was significantly associated with individual and household characteristics. While it was negatively associated with the number of household members, it was positively associated with marital status. Also, the higher the individuals economic level, the higher the quality of life satisfaction. Second, the quality of life satisfaction for the elderly showed statistically significant associations with the use of living facilities, cultural facilities, and neighborhood facilities. In addition, it had significant positive associations with the satisfaction level with pedestrian mobility and public transport mobility. These findings indicate that neighborhood-level urban environments and public transport are very important factors for the elderly’s life satisfaction. Third, respondents who had their own houses had higher life satisfaction than those who had monthly rents, indicating that housing stability is also an important factor for the elderly‘s life satisfaction. Finally, social environments showed strong positive associations with the elderly’s life satisfaction. Urban neighborhood environments that encourage social relationships among elderly people should be considered to improve life satisfaction for the elderly.