Understanding age-friendly communities: Five global typologies of older adults
Over the past two decades, the World Health Organization has led the movement to transform cities into age-friendly environments, aiming to improve health, participation, and security for older adults. Despite these efforts, the measurement of age-friendliness at a global level remains a challenge. The Age-Friendly Cities and Communities Questionnaire (AFCCQ) is a significant tool in this regard, providing a quantitative approach to assess cities’ age-friendliness across different countries. In this study, researchers used the AFCCQ to conduct a multi-country analysis, identifying five distinct typologies of older adults based on their experiences in eight countries. Here we show that these typologies offer a nuanced understanding of age-friendliness that transcends national boundaries. These findings contribute to the global effort to create more inclusive urban environments, guiding policymakers to design targeted interventions to enhance the quality of life for older populations.
Authors
- Jeroen Dikken (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4689-8309)
- Michele Bertani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5326-2632)
- Willeke van Staalduinen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3868-7683)
- Liat Ayalon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3339-7879)
- Zülfünaz Özer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2431-2346)
- Loredana Ivan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7153-5198)
- Daniel Pavlovski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0793-3482)
- Jan K. Kazak (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1864-9954)
- Helen Barrie
- Jolanta Perek-Białas
- Joost van Hoof (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9704-7128)
Institutions
- İstanbul Sabahattin Zaim Üniversitesi (TR)
- Jagiellonian University (PL)
- National School of Political Science and Public Administration (RO)
- Bar-Ilan University (IL)
- Ca' Foscari University of Venice (IT)
- SGH Warsaw School of Economics (PL)
- Fryske Akademy (NL)
- Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences (PL)
- UCL Australia (AU)
- Mother Teresa Hospital (AL)
- Life Systems (United States) (US)
- The Hague University of Applied Sciences (NL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Urban Studies
- Published
- 2026-04-24
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1177/00420980261437909
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Health disparities and outcomes
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 31.41
Funders
- Narodowym Centrum Nauki
- Nationaal Regieorgaan Praktijkgericht Onderzoek SIA