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Our study examines older people’s perceptions towards the urban environment and their spatial experiences through a person-environment perspective. We argue that Person-Environment (P-E) fit is critical to older people’s quality of life: positive environmental stimuli and personal adaptation competence have been held to influence this fit, and quality of fit will eventually affect interactions between older people and place. In a mixed-methods study, a context sensitive place audit was applied to a new town in Hong Kong, with a view to identifying strengths and weaknesses in the built environment and older people’s own strategies of living. Through 302 questionnaires and three focus groups with older participants, the results revealed high appreciation of outdoor spaces, transportation and social participation. The findings also indicate a strong association between housing typology and perceived age-friendliness. People accommodated in public housing estates tended to accord higher scores to their living environment although social exclusion was identified among oldest-old respondents in particular. Older people’s affective links with their living environment across time and their unique life-course experiences may help to explain their relatively relaxed attitudes when they face changes and hardships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines whether students perceive three different types of fit in an academic environment (i.e., interest–major [I–M] fit, demands–abilities [D–A] fit, and needs–supplies [N–S] fit) and whether these factors predict important academic and well-being criteria using a Chinese student sample. Results from confirmatory factor analyses support the assumption that students differentiate among the three fit perceptions. Incremental validity analysis and relative importance analysis reveal that the three types of fit each have a unique relationship with situational outcomes. Specifically, I–M fit predicts greater proportions of variance in major change intention; D–A fit predicts greater proportions of variance in academic performance; and N–S fit predicts greater proportions of variance in well-being (e.g., academic satisfaction and depression). Practical and theoretical implications of these results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conceptualizations of person-environment (P-E) fit were examined in a range of residential environments in Hong Kong by comparing three P-E models: the congruence model, the priority model, and a modified version of a model from Massam (2002). The study aimed to identify how older people perceive their fit with their living environment in Hong Kong, a predominantly Chinese society. Older residents in old urban areas and new towns were compared on how they utilized and related to their environments. Three environmental domains (structural, informal, and formal) were used to assess the extent of P-E fit. A short version of WHOQoL (as a measure of psychological wellbeing, PWB) was used as the dependent variable in the regression model. Irrespective of demographic variables and location of residence, the congruence model provided the best account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]