Do Home and Community Environments Explain Self-Rated Health Among Older Canadians? Evidence From the 2018 Canadian Housing Survey

Abstract

Objectives: This study examined the associations between home and community environmental factors and self-rated health (SRH) among older Canadians and how these associations vary by gender and living arrangements. Background: In social gerontology research, the psychosocial determinants of SRH have been widely investigated. Based on the environmental gerontology framework, this study examined the home and community environmental correlates of SRH. Method: The sample (aged 60 or older) was drawn from the 2018 Canadian Housing Survey (4,086 men living alone; 6,471 men living with others; 9,170 women living alone; 4,876 women living with others). Multiple regression analyses were used to examine the relationships between SRH and potential environmental correlates in a hierarchical model. Results: Findings show that older men and women living alone reported lower levels of SRH than those living with others. Regression findings show common and unique home and community environmental predictors of SRH by group. Common predictors of higher SRH were private housing residence, larger living space, satisfaction with dwelling, volunteering, no perceived need for community services, and community safety. Home maintenance needs predicted lower SRH among older men and women living with others; uninhabitable conditions predicted poor SRH among older men living with others and older women living alone. Conclusion: Results support the important effects of place in terms of home and community environments for older adults’ SRH, and associations differed by gender and living arrangements.