Study on Downsizing May Provide Answers to a Popular Objection
For those of you in the field of senior living, no doubt you’ve heard your prospective residents say they just have too much stuff, and it will difficult to get rid of their decades of belongings. Usually that’s one of the reasons used to rationalize why they don’t want to move to a senior living community.
There are certainly a number of services out there to help older adults make the process easier. And many communities have an ongoing relationship with those services to help their new prospective residents. Still, those prospects have to make the mental leap.
Now there’s a study underway to find out more about the downsizing process.
The Lawrence Journal-World recently reported on a study being conducted by the Life Span Institute at the University of Kansas. The purpose is to determine how older adults get rid of their belongings when it comes to making a move and downsizing. The head researcher is quoted as saying the main goal is to find out how they get rid of the possessions and how they feel about it.
David Ekerdt with the Household Moves Project states that many believe people become imprisoned by their stuff in later life.
There is no doubt that living in a retirement community helps those seniors break free from what is holding them back in continuing an active and engaged lifestyle. If their “stuff” is holding them back, the findings of the study could assist communities in helping prospective residents overcome the obstacle and make the move.
