Socially active neighborhoods: construct operationalization for aging in place, health promotion and psychometric testing

From the year 2003 when the first walkability scale was published to date, person-environment fit models and empirical research, some of which was published in Health Promotion International, have encapsulated healthy communities in 'neighborhood walkability'. While there is no doubt that neighborhood walkability positively influences health-seeking behaviors and health, recent models suggest that their measurement and conceptualization have not emphasized the role played by psychosocial and personal factors in aging in place. Thus, the development of scales measuring human ecosystem factors has not recognized all critical factors suited for older adults. In this paper, we aim to draw on relevant literature to frame a more holistic construct, hereby referred to as Socially Active Neighborhoods (SAN), that would better support aging in place in older populations. Through a narrative review based on a systematic search of the literature, we define the scope of SAN and delineate some contextual implications for gerontology, health promotion and psychometric testing. SAN, unlike neighborhood walkability in its current measurement and conceptualization, incorporates critical theory-informed psychosocial factors (i.e. safety and disability friendliness of neighborhood infrastructure) that can encourage older adults with physiological and cognitive limitations to maintain physical and social activities as well as health in later life. The SAN is the result of our adaptation of key person-environment models, including the Context Dynamics in Aging (CODA) framework, that recognizes the role of context in healthy aging.