Life in a retirement village: implications for contact with community and village friends

Friends provide acceptance, companionship, emotional support, and are important to mental health. One reason that older adults give for seeking alternative accommodations is to reduce their loneliness and isolation.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether older adults living in a retirement village have varying amounts of contact with friends who live within the retirement village or in the wider community.

Three hundred and twenty-three independently living residents of 25 retirement village sites were interviewed. Participants were asked a range of open and closed questions about the amount and kind of contact they had with co-resident friends and community-based friends.

Residents engaged in several weekly visits with village friends and maintained regular contact with community friends through telephone calls. Few residents engaged in community outings or participated in village activities with either village or community friends.

The nature of living in close proximity with other people, influences the amount of informal contact they have with friends. For those older individuals who seek alternative accommodation due to isolation or loneliness, re-location to congregate-style accommodation may increase their social contacts and have a positive impact on their well-being.