Theme Areas
Independent Living & Social Participation

Background information

The Independent Living and Social Participation Theme is based at the Australasian Centre on Ageing established by the University of Queensland. The Centre is the focal point for a strong University-wide, inter-disciplinary commitment to ageing research. Input also comes from the Centre for Research into Aged Care Services at Curtin University, which provides strong links to the perspectives of service providers and expertise in aged care evaluation and planning. Participant Members throughout the Network add strengths in a wide variety of communities, attitudes towards ageing, intergenerational relationships, and information technologies.

The Convenor for this Theme is Professor Helen Bartlett and the Co-Convenor is Professor Duncan Boldy. The Theme Area aims to contribute knowledge on ways in which older people can maintain a good quality of life in their own homes or in other living arrangements, and remain connected with their personal and community ties. These outcomes are influenced by many interconnected personal, social, environmental and professional/service factors. This theme integrates researchers’ interests around these factors and, in conjunction with the other themes, contributes to a comprehensive coverage of key questions and research priorities raised in many government reports and strategies over recent years.

Some of the issues within the scope of this theme, and in which Participant Members have considerable expertise, include:

• personal factors affecting positive outcomes for older people, such as self-management, self-actualisation, client decision making and empowerment, resident satisfaction, and quality of life

• social factors impacting on independence and participation, such as social support, prevention of social isolation, disability and ageing, culture and ethnicity, intergenerational relations, attitudes towards older people, social inclusion, and asset management

• environmental factors influencing independent living and social participation, such as transportation, falls prevention, environmental adaptation, accessibility issues, the built environment, affordable housing options, and intelligent homes

• the quality and adequacy of professional services for older people, including community care and case management, assessment and health service use, staff skills and communication in residential aged care, and regulation and quality care.

Current activities

This theme embraces a complex range of dimensions that focus on older people within the environment/society and the relationship with lifestyle and quality of life outcomes. A scoping paper is currently being prepared to outline the parameters of this theme and identify strengths and weaknesses of Australian research activity in the context of current policy goals, stakeholder perspectives and international trends in the area. Priorities will be defined for the five years of the Network, but in 2005, support will be offered to projects geared towards the forthcoming NHMRC-ARC Ageing Well, Ageing Productively research grant program. Topics identified for attention include ageing in place (accommodation and care support options), age-friendly environments/ infrastructure and attitudes towards ageing/older people.