Who are the Biggest Influencers of Older Adult Housing and Care Decisions?

Posted on March 13, 2018 by Jodi Boyne

We’ve been hearing it more and more from our members: family support is one of the biggest influencers in the decision-making process for older adults when it comes to their housing and care needs. A new study from the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society supports this trend and calls for clinicians to consider older people with illnesses and their families together as a unit of care.  

Influences on Care Preferences of Older People with Advance Illness found older adults changed their preferences based on the concerns of family members or a desire to avoid being a burden to others, particularly when it comes to preferences regarding the places where people wished to receive care. 

The researchers reviewed 57 previous studies about the preferences of older adults with advanced illness, including where people wanted to be cared for, the type of communication and decision-making they wanted and the quality of life they hoped to have as they age.

The study also found that older adults also identified their personal experience related to previous illnesses and in caring for others as influencers in their decision-making process. For more information, see Influences on Care Preferences.