Effects of Housing Conditions and Environmental Factors on Accidents and Modification Intention of the Vision Impaired

抄録

The purpose of this study is to investigate (1) whether housing conditions and environmental factors influence the occurrence of accidents, and (2) the level of intention to make modifications to housing for people who are visually impaired. Results from 148 questionnaires collected in Korea show a significant difference in the occurrence of accidents between those in the high environmental demand group (HED) and those in the low environmental demand group (LED), revealing that visually impaired people living in more difficult housing environments are likely to have more falls than people living in housing without as many obstructions. For the elderly, housing conditions have a greater influence on the probability of accidents. For respondents with low vision, housing conditions appeared to be a more significant factor than for people with no vision. People with good health and under LED rated their life satisfaction higher and modification intention lower than people under HED and with a bad health condition.