Abstract
This research describes and compares the relative importance residents and family members place on attributes of the environment, the programs, and the policies of assisted living; describes their satisfaction with these features; and identifies factors associated with congruence between residents' and family members' ratings of importance and satisfaction. Both residents and their family members had high importance and satisfaction ratings. Family members gave the assisted living setting lower satisfaction ratings on all features than did residents. Congruence ranged from 34% to 71% for importance items and from 29% to 63% for satisfaction. Female residents, affectionate family relationships, and residing in an AL owned by a chain were positively associated with congruence on importance items, while resident and family education, resident income, and family involvement were negatively associated with congruence on importance items. For congruence on satisfaction items, having an affectionate relationship was positively associated and higher ADL dependency, more family involvement at the facility, and family members who viewed the facility as a safe place were negatively associated with congruence. This study makes a major stride forward because cognitively intact residents' perspectives are compared and contrasted with their own family members' perspectives, thus showing that residents and family members are two distinct groups, each with a unique set of preferences.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 173-192 |
Number of pages | 20 |
Journal | Journal of Aging and Social Policy |
Volume | 18 |
Issue number | 3-4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 21 2006 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This study was partly funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through its funding of a study called The Assisted Living/Home Care Research Initiative, as part of the Home Care Research Initiative, administered by the Visiting Nurse Service of New York City.
Keywords
- Assisted living
- Consumer satisfaction
- Long-term care