The Seniors' Outdoor Survey (SOS Tool): comparing ratings and reliability between Italy and the USA Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • 2018, 2018 Landscape Research Group Ltd. To test applicability of an environmental assessment instrument in new settings, the ratings and reliability of the SOS Tool were compared in diverse settings with a similar climate: Milan, Italy; and Bryan/College Station, Texas, USA. This instrument evaluates physical environment support for outdoor usage by residents at senior facilities. Two trained raters assigned ratings (using a 17 scale) to the 60 instrument items at each setting (Italy: 94 outdoor spaces, 67 facilities; US: 22 outdoor spaces, 12 facilities). Overall mean ratings were similar across both sites (6% difference), and three of the five domains had comparable mean ratings. Mean inter-rater reliability was good in both settings but higher in Italy (ICC=.97 versus.82). Despite geographic/cultural differences, mean ratings for most items and domains were surprisingly similar between Italy and the US. This finding, and the high inter-rater reliability found in both settings, suggest this instrument may be useful in a wide range of settings.

published proceedings

  • LANDSCAPE RESEARCH

author list (cited authors)

  • Bardenhagen, E., Senes, G., Rodiek, S., Ferrara, C., Nejati, A., Fumagalli, N., Giornelli, A., & Lee, C.

citation count

  • 0

complete list of authors

  • Bardenhagen, Eric||Senes, Giulio||Rodiek, Susan||Ferrara, Cristina||Nejati, Adeleh||Fumagalli, Natalia||Giornelli, Antonio||Lee, Chanam

publication date

  • January 2019