Abstract
Cohousing communities are characterized by an increased amount of exchanges in social support. Since this circumstance could be attributed to certain characteristics of their inhabitants, the aim of this study was the evaluation of personality traits and trait emotional intelligence. To this purpose, a group difference study was performed in Germany between a sample of residents in cohousing communities (n = 180) and inhabitants of common neighborhoods (n = 104). Significant differences were found that support the idea that residents of cohousing communities have higher levels of well-being and minor levels of detachment and psychoticism, as well as a lower overall score for maladaptive personality traits. We have concluded that further research is needed to examine the possible causal relationships between these findings, and to verify whether living in a cohousing community can operate as a moderator of these traits or if their inhabitants had already bore them before moving into such communities.
Highlights
Cohousing consists of a cooperative life that emerged in Denmark in the early 1970s due to social changes, especially the aging of the population and the changed role of women in society (Fedrowitz & Gailing 2003)
Due to the presence of data that did not follow a normal distribution and/or data with an ordinal scale, several Mann-Whitney-U tests were performed (Dinneen & Blakesley 1973). The distribution of both groups differed, Kolmogorov-Smirnov p < .05 and a statistically significant difference was found between residents of cohousing communities (MRank = 157.82) and non-residents in these communities (MRank = 115.99), U = 6,603.00, Z = -4.803, p < .001, r =
The distribution of both groups differed, Kolmogorov-Smirnov p < .05 and a statistically significant difference was found between residents of cohousing communities (MRank = 157.82) and non-residents in these communities (MRank = 115.99), U = 6,603.00, Z = -4.803, p < .001, r = .285. The distribution of both groups did not differ, Kolmogorov-Smirnov p = .304 and a statistically significant difference was found between residents of cohousing communities (Mdn = 54.50) and non-residents (Mdn = 39.00), U = 3,691.00, Z = -8.505, p < .001, r =
Summary
Cohousing consists of a cooperative life that emerged in Denmark in the early 1970s due to social changes, especially the aging of the population and the changed role of women in society (Fedrowitz & Gailing 2003). In subsequent years, it has spread throughout Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands, and in the United States of America (Cummings & Kropf 2020). Several studies have been able to show that, in these communities, social support exchange is substantially higher than in ordinary neighborhoods (Fedrowitz 2016; Margolis & Entin 2011; Markle et al 2015) and this is precisely the reason why Parke (2017) considers cohousing communities as extended families
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
