Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 140-147). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Kentucky, 2002. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 142 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 128-139).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2004. Directed by Anderson D. Smith. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 37-41).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 101-103).

published_or_final_version / Medical Sciences / Master / Master of Medical Sciences

published_or_final_version / Gerontology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

published_or_final_version / Sports Science / Master / Master of Science in Sports Science

Hong Kong cannot single out herself from the global problem of increasing elderly population. The increase of elderly population like in other countries is the by-product of dwindling of birth rate and the longevity of life caused by the advanced medical care, enhancement of nutrition and low mortality rate which prolong people's life expectancy. Provision of housing as the integral part of care to the elders at their retirement age becomes a hot topic of the government to deal with. Comprehensive housing services help to develop the concept of ageing in place, care in the community and continuum services for achievement of the healthy ageing and successful ageing of the elders Moreover, government cannot cater for the needs of all elders who require residential care services when all elders becoming old and frail. Private residential care home services fills in the gap to provide such services in the elderly market. This research studies the causes of the requirement of the private residential care homes which under-went the change of family structure, change of status of elders in the traditional families due to low fertility rate, change of economic and social aspects due to urbanization and industrialization. Development of private elderly housing services provided by government and private sector from past to present and future are overviewed. Statistics on provision of private elderly care homes places in the current market are mentioned. The studies focus on the quality of services provided by the private residential care homes for the elderly. Methodology for the research is based on a mix of qualitative and quantitative method. Measurements on the level of satisfaction of the elderly respondents are identified and itemized basing on their required physical daily personal services. Face-to-face personal contact and ' in-person' dialogues with the elderly respondents and the frontline workers and operators were conducted for questionnaires and interview results. The elderly respondents were categorized into 3 ranges, namely, the young-old, old-old and the oldest-old for analysis of their level of satisfaction of services. Different age range respondents expressed different level of satisfaction with same items of services due to different requirements at various age strata. Comparisons on the services provided by sole privately operated residential care homes, NGO and Government Purchasing Scheme are examined. Results of the research are analyzed and finalized for conclusions and recommendations. The elders' willingness of ageing in place is definite yet with expectations of improvement for upgrading life quality. / published_or_final_version / Housing Management / Master / Master of Housing Management

Set within the context that the world’s population is ageing at an unprecedented rate, it is argued that care of the elderly, and their everyday lived experiences are poised to become prominent concerns. In the shadow of this, the ageing population poses a myriad of challenges not only for the elderly but also for policy makers who put in place systems for the provision of services within residential care homes. By virtue, given that communities of elderly consumers voices are often muted within many academic analyses of social policy and service provision this study illuminates and distils communities of elderly consumers understandings of residential care homes. Given the absence of suitable literature within the fields of marketing and interpretive consumer research, this study turns to the sociological and anthropological literature of Hall and Jefferson (1976) and Levi-Strauss (1966). In doing so, communities of elderly consumers within residential care homes can be theorised as a cultural community of ‘bricoleurs’ within a ‘cultural map of meaning’. Furthermore, viewed through this lens, such bricoleurs can be seen to understand their meaningful everyday lived experiences within, and through, the use of ‘bricolage’. Emanating from eight existential-phenomenological interviews, a rich picture emerges wherein bricoleurs understandings of residential care homes can be seen to be embedded not only within, but also through, such things as the body, leisure trips, noise disturbances, death, large items of furniture, small hand-sized objects, mobility aids, quality of care and social interaction. Moreover, in the light of the resultant interpretations common themes can be seen to emerge within communities of bricoleurs social and material understandings of residential care homes, namely the notion of cultures of dependency, trauma and comfort. This research contributes to marketing knowledge in that it argues that communities of ‘elderly bricoleurs’ within residential care homes can be seen to be held together by unique understandings of cultures of dependency, trauma and comfort. Furthermore, it is also argued that elderly bricoleurs address themselves to a relatively limited amount of bricolage that enables them to keep alive actual, desired, imagined and fictional community ties. Furthermore, the reality and efficacy of cultural communities of elderly bricoleurs seems to depend on their ability to address ‘whatever is to hand’ (Levi-Strauss, 1966) in order to construct and understand their cultural maps of meaning within residential care homes.