What shaped older adults’ well-being during a move into assisted living?

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Moving into an assisted living home can be difficult and may affect older adults’ well-being. To better understand how the transition influenced overall well-being, researchers used thematic analysis guided by grounded theory.

They conducted individual, face-to-face interviews with a convenience sample of 14 participants at an assisted living home in the rural southeastern United States. Two central themes emerged as influences on well-being during the transition: loss of independence, including loss of physical and mental health and loss of driving, and downsizing in space and possessions.

The themes support and broaden the Hierarchical Leisure Constraints Theory. The researchers proposed a Modified Constraints to Wellbeing model and recommended implications for health care practitioners working with older adults in assisted living homes. Further research is needed on the proposed model and on how to better describe these constraints to older adults’ well-being when they relocate into assisted living homes.