EXPLORING VALUES BEHIND HOME MODIFICATIONS: A CASE STUDY OF UPPER-MIDDLE CLASS ELDERLY HOMES IN BANDUNG

• Main Author: Ilham Akbar, Mohammad
• Format: Theses
• Language: Indonesia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/77633
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

Since 2021, Indonesia has entered an ageing population structure, where the percentage of the elderly population is more than 10 percent. Life expectancy and the number of elderly in Indonesia continues to increase from year to year and is projected to reach 20 percent of the population in 2045. The elderly experience physiological and psychosocial changes, which also result in changes in their housing needs. Elderly people need housing that is accessible and visitable, many of which are still not met in Indonesia (many fall risk factors in housing, housing that is not suitable to the preferences of the elderly, etc.) To meet the housing needs of the elderly, where the majority prefer to age in place, home modifications are a viable solution to put forward. Home modifications are changes implemented to home environments to help the elderly become more independent and safe in their own homes, including various changes such as adding ramps, grab rails, handrails and bathroom modifications. Various studies from various countries have proven empirically that home modifications can have a positive impact on the elderly. Even so, the majority of these studies come from developed countries and not developing countries like Indonesia. Therefore, this research seeks to fill this knowledge gap. Home modifications for the elderly in Indonesia have the potential to be subsidized by government funding or donor agencies, as is the case in developed countries. Even so, home modifications are often not in accordance with the preferences of the elderly. This research seeks to answer this problem. This research is a qualitative study with a multi-case study approach to explore the values behind home modifications that have been carried out in Indonesia using a means-end chain approach, namely identifying attribute, consequence, and value chains. This is done so that the architect can have the knowledge and approach in exploring the values of the elderly that must be considered in carrying out home modifications, to suit the preferences of the elderly in Indonesia. This research was conducted in three upper middle class elderly homes in the city of Bandung, as a form of purposive sampling of the elderly who had made modifications to their homes, which are still rarely found in Indonesia. The three research cases were chosen because they each had their own unique characteristics regarding the application and type of home modifications as well as personal backgrounds. The results of this study indicate that home modifications in Indonesia can be implemented through several methods, either independently by the elderly (Do it Yourself), by builders, or also by consultation with architects. The result of this research shows that structural home modifications (change in layout of walls, in this case through the relocation of bathroom and kitchen) required the involvement of an architect. Various attributes and consequences of modifications to elderly dwellings are discussed, along with a discussion of the process of ideation and design, both those that have occurred (revealed preference) and those formulated in the research process with researchers as architects (stated preference). The result of this research shows that the same home modification attribute may have differing consequences for different research participants. This research also shows that Schwartz's 10 universal values underlie the modifications to housing that have been and want to be done by the elderly in Indonesia. This study discusses the characteristics of the elderly that affect the differences in the values they have and compares the values of the elderly in Indonesia related to home modifications with previous findings in developed countries. Finally, this study synthesizes how the means-end chain approach can be used by architects in guiding the design process of client-centered home modifications. This is important as the elderly have differing values, thus a design process that only follows certain design standards/guidelines are often not in line with the elderly’s preferences. This research seeks to complete the theory of the ecological model of client-centered professional reasoning, by presenting a methodology that can bridge the lens of a professional (in this case an architect) with that of a client (in this case the elderly). The value-based design approach from Duerk can be applied by architects by integrating a means-end chain approach to explore the value of the elderly in designing residential modifications. Other than architects, value exploration can also involve families, builders, and other actors. This research is still an initial exploration with limited number and location of samples. There needs to be further research that replicates the means-end chain approach in researching elderly home modifications to explore other values behind elderly residential modifications in Indonesia, especially for lower middle class. Future research can explore the use of a value-based home modification design approach which is the hypothesis of this study, by involving architects as research participants. Value explorations that happen to aside from architects, but also families, builders, health workers, and others can also be studied.