Age-friendly neighbourhood environment, functional abilities and life satisfaction: A longitudinal analysis of older adults in urban China

Abstract

The construction of age-friendly neighbourhoods is a priority for practice and policy to promote active ageing and increase life satisfaction for older adults. However, there has been a paucity of longitudinal evidence on the interaction effects of age-friendly neighbourhood environment and functional abilities on life satisfaction among older adults in urban China. This study makes the first attempt to examine the effect of person-environment fit on life satisfaction by the accumulative effects of age-friendliness of the baseline neighbourhood environment (measured within the WHO Age-Friendly City framework) on functional abilities and life satisfaction trajectories and the long-term effects of functioning changes on life satisfaction, drawing from four waves of longitudinal data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) and latent growth curve modelling. Results indicated that the age-friendliness of transportation was positively associated with functional abilities, and housing was the primary factor that shaped life satisfaction at the baseline. Better maintenance of functional abilities could promote life satisfaction over time. For older adults living in recently built neighbourhoods, social environment factors such as associations and facilities for social participation were more important in functional abilities, and communication and information were more important in life satisfaction. For those living in neighbourhoods built before 2000, physical environment factors such as transportation were essential in functional abilities, and housing was more essential in life satisfaction; health-related facilities and services at baseline exerted a cumulative effect on maintaining functional abilities in the long run. Our findings inform policymakers about how to effectively allocate public resources to enhance older adults’ life satisfaction in the Chinese urban context.