Community Housing for the Elderly as a Source of Social Support and Prevention of Social Exclusion

Abstract

Since the end of the 1980s, the concept of community housing for the elderly has been established abroad. The advantages and disadvantages of this alternative housing for the aging generation are discussed in the context of various theoretical backgrounds and practical approaches. The aim of the article is to off er a view of the advantages and disadvantages of this concept from the perspective of the inhabitants of these communities abroad. Nine semi-structured interviews were conducted with residents and one community housing manager in Austria, Germany, Denmark, and Sweden. The interviews were evaluated with the help of the Atlas.ti 7 program. On the part of the participants, community housing for seniors is evaluated mostly positively; according to their statements, the negatives result from problems related to socialisation within the community. The fi ndings obtained during the interviews are in line with other previously conducted research. They fulfi l the postulates about the advantages of community housing for seniors, and they also confi rm the disadvantages already formulated in the literature. Considering all the verbalised advantages and disadvantages of community housing for the elderly in conversations, this type of housing can also be a welcome alternative for a certain part of the senior population in the Czech Republic.