Person-Environment Similarity in Relocation of Elderly Individuals

Congruence between person and environment are one of the most important things people look at when choosing a new place of residence. Similarly, person-environment congruence should be considered when choosing a nursing home or retirement home for an elderly individual. Person-environment theories of aging deal with the interaction of an individual with his or her environment. These sorts of theories also suggest that successful aging is more likely or enhanced when one is in harmony with one's environment. More specifically, the environment meets he needs of the individual. As illustrated by Hooyman and Kiyak (2002) a person who has lived in a rural setting would be more comfortable and adapt more easily to moving to a rural retirement or nursing home than they would moving to a downtown city environment (pg 330).

While overall person-environment congruence is important, there are certain aspects that play a more important role in adjustment and satisfaction with one's environment than others. The first aspect, and one aforementioned in the preceding paragraph is the need for a similarity in environment between one's past and present locations. Dwellers of rural communities should find a nursing home in a rural environment, while city dwellers might want to seek a nursing home in a more similar city environment as opposed to venturing out of their comfort zone into a quiet rural or suburban setting. The stereotype may be that nursing homes are in quiet atmosphere's, however, not every older individual can so easily adjust to drastically changing their environment like that; furthermore, many may not want to. In some cases such a drastic change to environment may never fully be adjusted to (Hooyman, Kiyak, 2002).

The layout of the new home will also affect the new resident. Many older individuals are extremely used to their old places of residence, and it takes a great deal of adjustment to "figure out" the new setting. This is especially true for elderly individuals with cognitive difficulties in which a new home layout may be extremely difficult to adjust to, and disturbing to their mental health. An individual can ease into the new living situation by similar items and layout being presented in the new environment. Laying out familiar items and placing the bed in a similar location or facing a similar direction, among other adjustments, can help an individual become more comfortable in their new home.

Another important aspect of person-environment congruence is the neighborhood. In some cases, a nursing home may become the only "community" an elderly individual sees. However, others may reside in a very minimal care type of nursing home in which the neighborhood around them becomes very important. The importance of neighborhood is especially heightened for those older individuals living on their own or with family. One's neighbors can provide a massive amount of support and social interaction that aid in successful aging. Additionally, close proximity to amenities can significantly raise one's satisfaction with one's new location.

Lifestyle also makes the list of important person-environment congruence factors. Is the new location restricting in any ways that the old location wasn't? Are there more rules? Is it less structured than a previous location? If a person has been taking walks everyday for the last 10 years, it will take a significant amount of adaptation, both physical and mental, to come into equilibrium with the new environment that don't have or allow talking walks in the community alone. Finding the best home should entail trying to keep routines and basic lifestyle factors the same or very similar so as to reduce how much adaptation one must undergo.

Since person-environment congruence is such an important factor in the relocation process, it's important to take it very seriously. A family choosing a new home for a grandparent or great grandparent should consider the impacts of placing their loved one in a new and completely unfamiliar environment. In order to create an easier change for the elderly individual, the aforementioned factors need to be kept in mind. Even if the family likes the idea of grandma on the country better than grandma in New York City, ultimately the equilibrium needs of grandma and her environment need to come first. If they aren't, the family risks throwing their loved one into a situation in which adjustment is extremely difficult, and possibly even unattainable; both of which can negatively impact an elderly individuals health and aging.

References:

Hooyman & Kiyak. (2006). Social Gerontology 6^th Edition. Pearson Education Company. Boston, MA.