The Relationship between Quality of Life and the Built Environment: A Study of an Air Force Base Housing Area.

This study investigated the possibility of a relationship between the built environment and Quality of Life QOL by studying the differences between two groups renovated and unrenovated at Wright-Patterson Air Force Bases Page Manor Housing Area. A literature search revealed that information existed concerning both the concepts of built environment and QOL. However, not much research had been accomplished that dealt with linkages between the two. A survey was administered to the residents of renovated and unrenovated sections of Page Manor. Five dimensions of QOL were examined from each group of residents and compared privacy, security, pride in the neighborhood, comfort level, and overall satisfaction. The Wilcoxon rank sum test was run to determine if the mean differences were statistically significant. The most significant difference exhibited between the renovated and unrenovated groups was in overall satisfaction. Also significant were mean differences in pride e.g., in exterior building appearance, landscaping, outdoor lighting, comfort level, and privacy. Some areas of security did not show significant differences.