Longitudinal Study on the Care Environments for Older Adults with Dementia: Focusing on a Green Care Farm and a Group Home

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of green care farm (GCF) facilities and group home care facilities on the behavior of older adults with dementia. Participants from a group home (n=5) in Seoul, Korea, and a GCF (n=4) in the Netherlands were observed three times over one year using Dementia Care Mapping tool. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-tests. The results were as follows: 1) the GCF’s residents interacted more with both neighbors and staff and spent more time engaging in physical activities, while the group home’s residents primarily participated in structured physical exercise programs. 2) Although indoor activity programs were relatively well developed in the group home, which lacked outdoor space, the residents in the GCF, with its homelike setting and spacious outdoor areas, exhibited less withdrawn behavior. This study suggests that a physical environment with a homelike atmosphere, appropriate stimuli, and outdoor areas is directly or indirectly associated with the behavior of older adults with dementia.