Press Room - 2009 NIC Press Releases
Study Shows Only 'Very Satisfied' Residents Tend to Recommend
Seniors Housing Communities to Others
Wins GE Award for Best Research Paper
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 21, 2009
Contact: Renee Tilton, (410) 626-0805 or rtilton@crosbymarketing.com
Annapolis, Md. - The National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry (NIC) has announced
the winning entry from its annual call for applied research papers. The white paper, which is printed
in the 2009 Seniors Housing & Care Journal along with other top contenders, analyzed the results
of research seeking to find how satisfaction levels moved seniors housing residents to recommend their
communities to others. The authors, who won the GE Award for Best Research Paper, were recognized in
front of 1,600 industry leaders at the recent 19th Annual NIC Conference in Chicago, Ill.
The winning paper, "Satisfied Residents Won't Recommend Your Community, But Very Satisfied Residents
Will," presented the case that the willingness of residents to recommend their community to others was
correlated to the length of time a community was open and the residents' overall satisfaction with it.
In addition, the article showed how prospective residents learn about independent living communities
and the relationship of resident satisfaction with 74 physical and 45 nonphysical community attributes.
The research and writing was conducted by four individuals: Margaret A. Wylde, Ph.D., president and
CEO, ProMatura Group, LLC; Edie R. Smith, senior vice president and director of research, ProMatura
Group, LLC; David Schless, president, American Seniors Housing Association; and Rachelle Bernstecker,
vice president, Government Affairs, American Seniors Housing Association.
Using data from a survey with 1,042 independent living residents, key findings from the study showed:
- As the age of the community increased, a significantly greater proportion of new residents learned about
it from those living at the community and fewer learned about it from advertising or direct mail marketing.
- Very satisfied residents (74 percent) are almost four times more likely to recommend their community
to a friend than those who are just satisfied (19 percent).
- Nonphysical attributes - such as policies, personnel, programming and services - have a significantly
greater impact on resident satisfaction than a community's physical attributes - including size and
type of residences, building type and structure, and amenities.
- High satisfaction is related to five attributes of the community: quality of daily life (cultural, musical,
arts/crafts, entertainment and social opportunities); dining flexibility (quality of food, variety of
menu items and the services and times available for dining); quality of personnel; personal control
(privacy and sense of safety and security); and comfort (ease of making friends and the sense that the
residence is one's home).
"Studying both physical and nonphysical attributes is important," said winning author Wylde, "because
once the community is built, its physical attributes are difficult to change without significant investment.
On the other hand, the nonphysical attributes can be continually improved with relatively minor investment."
In the paper, Wylde and team recommended the ways communities can improve these nonphysical attributes.
Now in its 12th year, the peer-reviewed Journal, published annually by NIC, provides a platform
for applied researchers to get recognition for their work on subjects dealing with seniors housing and
care. The author(s) of the first prize article receive a plaque and $5,000 (total) cash award, sponsored
by GE Healthcare Financial Services. This year, since Dr. Wylde is a member of the Journal's
Editorial Board, the monetary portion of the award was returned to NIC and will be used to stimulate
interest in the Journal from researchers in graduate school or those just starting their careers.
"The importance of the Journal is catching on and we received more white paper submissions this year
than any other," said Robert G. Kramer, president of NIC. "Not only were we impressed by the diversity
of the articles that were selected by the editorial board to include in the Journal, but we believe
they have immediate relevance for seniors housing management and broad implications for the field."
Linda Hollinger-Smith, R.N., Ph.D., FAAN, director, Mather LifeWays Institute on Aging, served as managing
editor of the Journal and oversaw the process of selecting the winning paper. In addition to Wylde,
the two other editors were Joan Hyde, Ph.D., Ivy Hall Senior Living, Inc. and David A. Lindeman, Ph.D.,
Center for Technology and Aging.
Along with the winning paper, a special commendation was given to Rosalie A Kane, Ph.D., and Lois J.
Cutler, Ph.D., University of Minnesota, for their paper on "Promoting Homelike Characteristics and Eliminating
Institutional Characteristics in Community-Based Residential Care Settings."
Topics of the other papers included in this year's Journal are: "The Restorative Qualities of an Activity-Based,
Third Place Café for Seniors," "The Utility of a Falls Risk Self-Assessment Tool," "Preparing for the
Future: Trends in Continuing Care Retirement Communities," "An Exploratory Look at Preferences for Seven
Long-Term Care Options" and "Addressing the Home as an Integrated Part of the Solution to Long-Term
Care in America."
Copies of the 2009 Seniors Housing & Care Journal are available through NIC for $95. Limited quantities
of the Journal from previous years are available for $50. To order, visit www.NIC.org.
About NIC
Founded in 1991, the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry is a nonprofit
education and research organization providing information about business strategy and capital formation
for the senior living industry. NIC is the leading provider of historical and trend data on the industry
through its NIC MAP® Data and Analysis Service that tracks properties in the 100 largest metropolitan
areas and its Key Financial Indicators™ (KFIs) that report nationwide statistics. Proceeds from
its annual conference and other events are used to fund data and research on issues of importance to
lenders, investors, developers, operators, and others interested in meeting the housing and care needs
of America's seniors. For more information, visit www.NIC.org or call
(410) 267-0504.
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