How age-friendly is The Hague?

Results of a quantitative study in which AFEdemy participated. An open-access article in Cities is just released.

In February 2022, the results of the 2020 evaluation of the age-friendliness of The Hague were published in the Elsevier journal Cities as an open access paper.

Measuring the age-friendliness

The municipality of The Hague has been a member of the WHO’s Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities since 2015. The municipality commissioned a survey to investigate how older citizens view the age-friendliness of their city. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among a diverse sample of 393 community-dwelling older citizens. The survey made use of the Age Friendly Cities and Communities Questionnaire (AFCCQ), and multilevel regression techniques to investigate how social groups differ on the domains of the AFCCQ. This questionnaire had been developed in early 2020 by Dr. Jeroen Dikken and colleagues and provides a valid instrument for measuring the age-friendliness of the city.

The overall scores of the age-friendliness of The Hague were satisfactory

The Hague scored a satisfied as an overall score (16.9 ± 8.87), and a satisfied on social participation (2.6 ± 2.46), civic participation and employment (1.4 ± 1.34), communication and information (1.4 ± 1.32), respect and social inclusion (1.6 ± 1.59), community support and health services (2.7 ± 2.79), transportation (1.7 ± 1.26) and financial situation (1.9 ± 1.26). The Hague has an above-average score in the field of housing (2.4 ± 1.06). For Outdoor spaces and buildings, the municipality scores a moderate positive score (0.9 ± 1.41).

Multilevel regression techniques were used to investigate how social groups differ

Significant differences were found for sex, age, socio-economic position, receiving care support, and use of mobility aids. The findings show that older people have different perceptions regarding their city’s age-friendliness. Policy makers must acknowledge this heterogeneity among their older citizens and adapt city policies accordingly.

In 2022, a follow-up is planned as part of a larger cohort study in The Hague.