Social-Architectural Design of Community-Based Embedded Comprehensive Elderly Centers in China

Abstract

The community-based embedded comprehensive elderly center (CECEC) was proposed in 2015 to address ageing population issues in China in existing communities. However, there is as yet no satisfactory solution for how to design the CECEC to properly integrate resources and create social inclusion. Synthesizing the social design and architectural design literature, this study proposes a CECEC architectural design that incorporates the approach, content, and design steps of social design. This study argues that social-architectural CECEC design goes beyond traditional architectural design. It is not limited to the construction of material space; it also focuses on the participation of different stakeholders. Considering the needs of the people and the potential of existing communities, the proposed social-architectural CECEC design process involves architectural-social problem definition, project establishment, architectural programming, design ordering, strategy confirmation, and architectural design.