Older Adults’ Experiences of Autonomy During COVID-19 Pandemic

BSTRACT A sense of autonomy is important to ensure a good quality of life for older adults. However, the recent COVID-19 pandemic challenged older adults’ autonomy. The government has imposed rules and regulations to slow down the spread of the virus that reduced older adults’ abilities to go outside. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 older adults living alone in community-dwellings to understand the influence of the pandemic on their experiences of autonomy. Our findings show that even though older adults experienced limited autonomy due to extrinsic (e.g., government regulation, influence of others) and intrinsic (e.g., risk perception) factors, they experienced new opportunities for autonomy through engagement in various self-chosen activities at home. The insights from the study pave ways for future research and design of aging in place technology focusing on providing a sense of autonomy.