The effect of age desegregation on environmental quality for elderly living in public/publicly subsidized housing

A random sample of elderly living in age-desegregated public housing for the elderly is compared with a random sample of elderly living in age-homogeneous Section 202 housing in the same urban area. Findings suggest that the current trend of mixing young handicapped persons with elderly tenants is associated with a decline in environmental quality on three dimensions--social networks, territoriality, and global measures of satisfaction. The differences are not explained away by pre-existing factors, such as social and economic resources and service provision.