Emotional well-being as a predictor of quality of life in senior co-housing

Abstract

After an analysis of older people from a contemporary perspective, this study proposes co-housing as an alternative way of life to traditional senior residential homes. This form of co-habitation is proposed for reasons including its promotion of a better quality of life, with the latter conceived as a multidimensional concept that depends on the interaction of personal factors and environment. This definition is broadly agreed and quality of life is measured using various indicators, including emotional wellbeing. This paper analyses the aforementioned dimension in depth. It is shown that trust in one’s own abilities, stability and emotional state are key determinants in the overall assessment of quality of life. A comparison is performed between two residential models for older people in this context: traditional residential homes in which a care-based system is applied, and co-housing, a model in which symmetrical and nonhierarchical relationships are established where users are also active managers of their co-habitation model.