Assessment of Recreation Areas in Terms of Risk Groups in the Society

Abstract

It is seen that the physical health of aged individuals, who constitute one of the very special and important groups in society, may have deteriorated, especially in the last moments of their lives. Individuals who have to leave the house less often may also be in a psychologically bad situation in parallel with this restriction. In this sense, the need for areas where especially older individuals can spend more quality time is quite high. In this context, the research aimed to evaluate recreation areas for older individuals, especially in a region such as Erzurum, where winter conditions are quite harsh. In the research conducted using the interview technique, one of the qualitative research methods, the data were collected with the general information form and interview form prepared by the researchers. The research was conducted between January 2023, and May 2023. As a result of the research, findings were found that older individuals generally go out for health reasons, they find the streets unsafe, and recreation areas are not suitable and need to be improved. According to the results obtained in the research, it can be recommended that recreation areas be developed for both summer and winter conditions and that necessary arrangements be made to enable older individuals to spend quality time in these areas. Keyword: Aged individuals, recreation areas, physical health, psychological health, quality time