The Life Space Questionnaire: A Measure of the Extent of Mobility of Older Adults

Mobility in older adults is typically discussed in terms of component maneuvers including analy sis of gait and postural instability; activities that depend on mobility such as bathing, dressing, or shopping; or adverse events during mobility such as falls or motor vehicle crashes. None of these approaches reflects a key aspect of mobility-the extent of movement within a person's environment, or life space in the gerontological literature. Here we describe this concept as it applies to mobility and present a questionnaire instrument designed to measure life space in community-dwelling older adults. Results indicate that the Life Space Questionnaire (LSQ) is reliable and has construct and criterion validity in a sample of olderadults. The LSQ can be used to establish the spatial extent of an older person's mobility and may ultimately be useful as an outcome measure in studies evaluating interventions designed to enhance mobility and inde pendence in community-dwelling older populations.

[1]  Beth T. Stalvey,et al.  Older drivers and cataract: driving habits and crash risk. , 1999, The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences.

[2]  M. Sloane,et al.  Visual processing impairment and risk of motor vehicle crash among older adults. , 1998, JAMA.

[3]  C. Fabrigoule,et al.  Disability and cognitive impairment in the elderly. , 1997, Disability and rehabilitation.

[4]  Christianna S. Williams,et al.  Driving Cessation and Increased Depressive Symptoms: Prospective Evidence from the New Haven EPESE , 1997, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[5]  T. Seeman.  Social ties and health: the benefits of social integration. , 1996, Annals of epidemiology.

[6]  S. Cummings,et al.  Risk factors for hip fracture in white women. Study of Osteoporotic Fractures Research Group. , 1995, The New England journal of medicine.

[7]  M. Tinetti,et al.  Predictors of Automobile Crashes and Moving Violations among Elderly Drivers , 1994, Annals of Internal Medicine.

[8]  L. Fried,et al.  Visual Impairment and Disability in Older Adults , 1994, Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry.

[9]  L Goldman,et al.  Improved visual function and attenuation of declines in health-related quality of life after cataract extraction. , 1994, Archives of ophthalmology.

[10]  A. Damiano,et al.  The VF-14. An index of functional impairment in patients with cataract. , 1994, Archives of ophthalmology.

[11]  R. Glynn,et al.  Association of Visual Impairment with Mobility and Physical Function , 1994, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[12]  M. Lawton,et al.  Functional Disability: Activities and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living , 1994, Annual Review of Gerontology and Geriatrics.

[13]  S. Studenski,et al.  Balance and Gait Measures , 1994, Annual Review of Gerontology and Geriatrics.

[14]  K. Ball,et al.  Visual attention problems as a predictor of vehicle crashes in older drivers. , 1993, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[15]  E F Cook,et al.  Development of the Activities of Daily Vision Scale: A Measure of Visual Functional Status , 1992, Medical care.

[16]  D. K. Sebera.  THE IMPACT OF THE ENVIRONMENT , 1992 .

[17]  M. Tinetti,et al.  The Nursing Home Life‐Space Diameter , 1990, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[18]  M. C. Clark,et al.  Older Adults and Daily Living Task Profiles , 1990, Human factors.

[19]  M. Tinetti,et al.  Risk factors for falls among elderly persons living in the community. , 1988, The New England journal of medicine.

[20]  K G Manton,et al.  A longitudinal study of functional change and mortality in the United States. , 1988, Journal of gerontology.

[21]  J. Williamson,et al.  The elderly in residential care , 1988 .

[22]  L. Branch,et al.  Assessing physical function in the elderly. , 1987, Clinics in geriatric medicine.

[23]  Linda Teri,et al.  6/Use of the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale with Older Adults , 1986 .

[24]  M. Tinetti.  Performance‐Oriented Assessment of Mobility Problems in Elderly Patients , 1986, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[25]  S. Golant.  Factors Influencing the Locational Context of Old People's Activities , 1984, Research on aging.

[26]  L. Branch,et al.  A prospective study of functional status among community elders. , 1984, American journal of public health.

[27]  F. Ferris,et al.  New visual acuity charts for clinical research. , 1982, American journal of ophthalmology.

[28]  I. Bailey,et al.  Visual Factors and Orientation‐Mobility Performance , 1982, American journal of optometry and physiological optics.

[29]  L. Donaldson,et al.  The elderly in residential care: mortality in relation to functional capacity. , 1980, Journal of epidemiology and community health.

[30]  G. Rowles.  Prisoners Of Space?: Exploring The Geographical Experience Of Older People , 1978 .

[31]  K. Lewin,et al.  Field theory in social science , 1951 .

[32]  K. Ball,et al.  Vision impairment, eye disease, and injurious motor vehicle crashes in the elderly. , 1998, Ophthalmic epidemiology.

[33]  L. Fried,et al.  Disability as a public health outcome in the aging population. , 1996, Annual review of public health.

[34]  D. Roenker,et al.  Developmental changes in attention and visual search throughout adulthood. , 1990 .

[35]  L. Fried,et al.  Morbidity as a focus of preventive health care in the elderly. , 1988, Epidemiologic reviews.

[36]  Denis G. Pelli,et al.  THE DESIGN OF A NEW LETTER CHART FOR MEASURING CONTRAST SENSITIVITY , 1988 .

[37]  Diane Y. Carstens,et al.  A PLACE TO GROW OLD: THE MEANING OF ENVIRONMENT IN OLD AGE , 1986, Landscape Journal.

[38]  U S Nayak,et al.  The life-space diary: a measure of mobility in old people at home. , 1985, International rehabilitation medicine.

[39]  V. Regnier.  5 – Urban Neighborhood Cognition: Relationships between Functional and Symbolic Community Elements , 1983 .

[40]  M. Lawton.  4 – Time, Space, and Activity , 1983 .

[41]  G. Rowles,et al.  Aging and milieu : environmental perspectives on growing old , 1983 .

[42]  F. Carp,et al.  The validity, reliability and generalizability of diary data. , 1981, Experimental aging research.

[43]  Kevin Lynch,et al.  The Image of the City , 1960 .

[44]  CynthiaOwsley,et al.  Older Drivers and Cataract : Driving Habits and Crash Risk , 2022 .