The Impact of Housing Needs on the Quality of Life Older People: A Pilot Study in Terengganu, Malaysia

Abstract

By the year 2030, it is believed that the older population will rise in number in Malaysia. This has serious implications to the needs and quality of life of the people. The research was carried out to establish the interrelationship between housing requirements and the quality of life among the older individuals on the basis of a pilot research of 120 respondents whose age was 60 years and above. Quantitative survey design was used and questionnaire instrument included sections of demography, housing requirements, and quality of life using the OPQOL-35 instrument.The level of housing needs, descriptive analysis revealed that the level was high (Mean = 4.0, SD = 0.58), and the overall quality of life among the respondents were also high (Mean = 136.51, SD = 17.04). The results of Pearson correlation analysis revealed that the quality of life of older adults and their housing needs had a strong positive correlation (r = 0.72, p < 0.001). The results support the idea that the access to safe, comfortable, and elder-friendly housing is one of the key factors in enhancing the quality of life of this group of the population. Thus, more housing policies, the delivery of facilities that are elderly-friendly, and enhanced community support are needed to be ready to make the transition to aged-nation.