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Understanding the wicked problem of providing accessible housing for the ageing population in Sweden

Jonsson, Oskar LU orcid ; Frögren, Joakim LU ; Haak, Maria LU ; Slaug, Björn LU orcid and Iwarsson, Susanne LU (2021) In International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18(3).
Abstract

While accessible housing is known as important to promote healthy ageing, the societal issue of providing accessible housing for the ageing population bears the characteristics of a “wicked problem”. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of crucial variables for decision-making about the provision of accessible housing for the ageing population in Sweden. Materials used for a deductive content analysis were elicited through a research circle involving three researchers and twelve non-academic representatives. Brown and colleagues’ conceptual five-dimension framework to address wicked problems was used for the understanding of crucial variables in decision-making about housing provision. The findings show that such... (More)

While accessible housing is known as important to promote healthy ageing, the societal issue of providing accessible housing for the ageing population bears the characteristics of a “wicked problem”. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of crucial variables for decision-making about the provision of accessible housing for the ageing population in Sweden. Materials used for a deductive content analysis were elicited through a research circle involving three researchers and twelve non-academic representatives. Brown and colleagues’ conceptual five-dimension framework to address wicked problems was used for the understanding of crucial variables in decision-making about housing provision. The findings show that such reasoning is dominated by the socioeconomic dimension. Findings in the biophysical dimension reveal well-known challenges pertaining to the definition and interpretation of the concept of accessibility and its operationalization. The dimensions are intertwined in a complex manner, which is essential for effective and efficient decision-making. The findings could make decision-makers aware of the diversity of individual thinking involved when addressing this wicked problem. Acting upon the crucial variables identified in this study could contribute to progressive decision-making and more efficient ways to develop and provide accessible housing to promote health ageing.

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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Ageing in place, Built environment, Decision support, Housing accessibility, Housing and health, Housing provision, Planning, Public health, Research circle, Trade-offs
in
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
volume
18
issue
3
article number
1169
pages
21 pages
publisher
MDPI AG
external identifiers
  • scopus:85099875563
  • pmid:33525734
ISSN
1661-7827
DOI
10.3390/ijerph18031169
project
UserAge: Understanding User Participation in Research on Ageing and Health
Decision Support System for Improved Accessibility in Multi-Family Housing
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
2da10623-0fa5-484d-abcd-ca646cdd8bf9
date added to LUP
2021-02-05 13:20:33
date last changed
2024-06-14 09:28:08
@article{2da10623-0fa5-484d-abcd-ca646cdd8bf9,
  abstract     = {{<p>While accessible housing is known as important to promote healthy ageing, the societal issue of providing accessible housing for the ageing population bears the characteristics of a “wicked problem”. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of crucial variables for decision-making about the provision of accessible housing for the ageing population in Sweden. Materials used for a deductive content analysis were elicited through a research circle involving three researchers and twelve non-academic representatives. Brown and colleagues’ conceptual five-dimension framework to address wicked problems was used for the understanding of crucial variables in decision-making about housing provision. The findings show that such reasoning is dominated by the socioeconomic dimension. Findings in the biophysical dimension reveal well-known challenges pertaining to the definition and interpretation of the concept of accessibility and its operationalization. The dimensions are intertwined in a complex manner, which is essential for effective and efficient decision-making. The findings could make decision-makers aware of the diversity of individual thinking involved when addressing this wicked problem. Acting upon the crucial variables identified in this study could contribute to progressive decision-making and more efficient ways to develop and provide accessible housing to promote health ageing.</p>}},
  author       = {{Jonsson, Oskar and Frögren, Joakim and Haak, Maria and Slaug, Björn and Iwarsson, Susanne}},
  issn         = {{1661-7827}},
  keywords     = {{Ageing in place; Built environment; Decision support; Housing accessibility; Housing and health; Housing provision; Planning; Public health; Research circle; Trade-offs}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{3}},
  publisher    = {{MDPI AG}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health}},
  title        = {{Understanding the wicked problem of providing accessible housing for the ageing population in Sweden}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18031169}},
  doi          = {{10.3390/ijerph18031169}},
  volume       = {{18}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}